Carson Advisory Inc. Grows Stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Carson Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,026 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Carson Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $677,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CRM. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.1 %

CRM opened at $254.98 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $289.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $310.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $245.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.94, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. 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 Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This is a boost from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of several research reports. Macquarie reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 20th. TD Cowen upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $361.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total transaction of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,128,626.68. This represents a 11.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Oscar Munoz acquired 3,882 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $257.28 per share, for a total transaction of $998,760.96. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 11,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,046,967.04. This represents a 48.76 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.