Davidson Capital Management Inc. Lowers Stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Davidson Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 29.2% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,339 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 3,850 shares during the quarter. Davidson Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $2,506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.4%

NYSE CRM opened at $258.98 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $268.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $298.72. Salesforce Inc. has a one year low of $230.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $247.59 billion, a PE ratio of 40.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.44 EPS. Analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Brian Millham sold 3,937 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total value of $1,120,391.46. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 5,518 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,570,312.44. This trade represents a 41.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $137,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 11,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,220,525. This trade represents a 4.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,111 shares of company stock valued at $9,299,283 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on CRM. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $325.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Bank of America decreased their target price on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Salesforce from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $346.34.

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.