Krane Funds Advisors LLC Buys New Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Krane Funds Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,349 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $451,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. United Bank grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.1% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 7,303 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,999,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 14.8% in the third quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 34,918 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $9,558,000 after purchasing an additional 4,489 shares during the period. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 36.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 390 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 3,104 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $850,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 154,793 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $42,368,000 after purchasing an additional 9,229 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 652 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $216,646.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 121,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,361,054.76. This trade represents a 0.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Oscar Munoz purchased 3,882 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $257.28 per share, with a total value of $998,760.96. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,046,967.04. This trade represents a 48.76 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 45,660 shares of company stock valued at $14,095,336 in the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $247.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on Salesforce from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $361.42.

Salesforce Trading Down 5.9 %

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $240.26 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $230.89 billion, a PE ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The business’s fifty day moving average is $302.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.80. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. 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 Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This is a boost from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 26.10%.

Salesforce 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.