MetLife Investment Management LLC Has $95.97 Million Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 287,036 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 601 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for 0.5% of MetLife Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $95,965,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in Salesforce by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 193,314 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $52,912,000 after purchasing an additional 10,084 shares during the period. Invst LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 4.2% during the third quarter. Invst LLC now owns 17,003 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,654,000 after buying an additional 685 shares in the last quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.2% in the third quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 7,332 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,007,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 15.7% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 4,290 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,174,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 7,047 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,930,000 after purchasing an additional 866 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total value of $1,762,784.29. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. The trade was a 16.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 652 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $216,646.56. Following the sale, the insider now owns 121,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $40,361,054.76. This trade represents a 0.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 47,654 shares of company stock worth $14,124,094 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CRM shares. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $405.00 to $393.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $360.32.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM stock opened at $246.93 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $281.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $309.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $237.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.61, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 26.10%.

Salesforce Company Profile

Salesforce, Inc provides Customer Relationship Management (CRM) technology that brings companies and customers together worldwide. The company's service includes sales to store data, monitor leads and progress, forecast opportunities, gain insights through analytics and artificial intelligence, and deliver quotes, contracts, and invoices; and service that enables companies to deliver trusted and highly personalized customer support at scale.