Impax Asset Management Group plc Reduces Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Impax Asset Management Group plc trimmed its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 71.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,116 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 61,828 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $8,397,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce during the third quarter worth $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 85.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, Director G Mason Morfit sold 722,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.11, for a total transaction of $249,995,253.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,192,009 shares in the company, valued at $1,104,786,234.99. This trade represents a 18.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total value of $141,050.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,864 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,805,936.08. This trade represents a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,102,572 shares of company stock worth $381,283,706. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CRM shares. Northland Securities reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 target price (up from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $375.53.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of CRM opened at $308.27 on Tuesday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00. The company has a market capitalization of $295.01 billion, a PE ratio of 50.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $332.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $306.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

About Salesforce

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.