Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Portfolio Design Labs LLC

Portfolio Design Labs LLC trimmed its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 41.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 4,522 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,729,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aviance Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,860,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Umpqua Bank raised its position in Salesforce by 0.4% in the third quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 7,708 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Nvwm LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $667,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,506 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 11.6% in the 3rd quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 357 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $323.29 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $309.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.29. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $348.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $289.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $267.31.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.83%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $18,156,600.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 140,173 shares of company stock worth $40,146,206 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Salesforce from $310.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Salesforce from $285.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Cfra set a $343.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $326.19.

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.