Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Position Raised by Montag A & Associates Inc.

Montag A & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,248 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Montag A & Associates Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $752,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of CRM opened at $325.49 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $336.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $303.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $311.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $212.00 and a 52 week high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.62 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $377.63.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $2,089,882.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,705,195. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,111,420 shares of company stock valued at $384,366,700. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.