TFC Financial Management Inc. Boosts Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,263 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its position in Salesforce by 1.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,007,404 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $13,432,855,000 after buying an additional 864,193 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,395,132,000 after buying an additional 257,501 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 2.6% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,276,551 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,360,215,000 after buying an additional 314,530 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Salesforce by 1.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,964,702 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,632,599,000 after buying an additional 57,825 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Salesforce by 1.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,912,854 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,618,407,000 after buying an additional 96,381 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $326.26 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $312.23 billion, a PE ratio of 53.66, 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 current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The business has a 50-day moving average of $338.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $301.96. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $2,089,882.74. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,705,195. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,111,420 shares of company stock worth $384,366,700. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp raised Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays boosted their target price on Salesforce from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Salesforce from $340.00 to $430.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $377.63.

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.