Focus Partners Wealth Increases Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Focus Partners Wealth grew its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 412.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 220,519 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 177,510 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Wealth’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $74,124,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 85.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock opened at $275.38 on Friday. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The company has a market capitalization of $264.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.29, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $267.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $307.06. 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $0.42 dividend. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.61%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 26.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CRM. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Salesforce from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Macquarie reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $310.00 to $255.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-two have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $350.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total transaction of $2,041,607.78. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,342,415. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $137,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,220,525. The trade was a 4.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 45,830 shares of company stock worth $12,907,361. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.