Vulcan Value Partners LLC Sells 638,648 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Vulcan Value Partners LLC lowered its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 46.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 749,566 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 638,648 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for approximately 4.2% of Vulcan Value Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Vulcan Value Partners LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $250,551,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CRM. Invst LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invst LLC now owns 17,003 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,654,000 after purchasing an additional 685 shares during the last quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 7,332 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,007,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 4,290 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,174,000 after acquiring an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co boosted its stake in Salesforce by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 7,047 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,930,000 after acquiring an additional 866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 570.4% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 54,446 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $14,903,000 after purchasing an additional 46,324 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Salesforce from $405.00 to $393.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stephens began coverage on Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $311.00 price target on the stock. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $351.37.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the company’s 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 $167,970.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,202,758.58. This represents a 7.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total value of $141,050.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,805,936.08. This trade represents a 7.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 52,051 shares of company stock worth $15,027,714 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $267.87 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market capitalization of $257.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $273.75 and a 200-day moving average of $308.27.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. This is a boost from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 26.10%.

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.