Primecap Management Co. CA Buys 199,700 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Primecap Management Co. CA grew its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 64.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 508,600 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 199,700 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA owned approximately 0.05% of Salesforce worth $130,761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 66.3% in the 4th quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management now owns 1,567 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $412,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares during the period. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 5,951,415 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,566,055,000 after buying an additional 18,397 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 32.6% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 789,525 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $207,756,000 after buying an additional 194,224 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 7,160 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,983,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, M&G Plc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,178,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 2,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.22, for a total transaction of $675,416.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 117,581 shares in the company, valued at $28,362,888.82. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 2,800 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.22, for a total transaction of $675,416.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 117,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,362,888.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total transaction of $608,108.04. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 828 shares in the company, valued at $202,702.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 62,376 shares of company stock worth $15,878,005. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE CRM opened at $255.32 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $253.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $267.11. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $193.68 and a one year high of $318.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $247.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.29.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 28.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. BNP Paribas raised shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $335.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $350.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $305.55.

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.