Intech Investment Management LLC Has $55.44 Million Stock Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 0.2% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 202,557 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 483 shares during the period. Salesforce comprises about 0.6% of Intech Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $55,442,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its stake in Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 816.7% during the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% in the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on CRM. Bank of America increased their price objective on Salesforce from $325.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wedbush increased their price objective on Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $342.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Salesforce from $305.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $326.19.

Salesforce Price Performance

Salesforce stock opened at $325.70 on Thursday. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $348.86. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $291.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $267.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $311.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.64, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $18,156,600.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 2,934 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $262.95, for a total value of $771,495.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,716 shares in the company, valued at $977,122.20. The trade was a 44.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 136,117 shares of company stock valued at $39,085,562. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Company 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.