Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Increases Stake in Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 324,960 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,878 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $88,613,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Painted Porch Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 260.0% during the second quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 90 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 314.8% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 383.3% in the second quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 116 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Quaker Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 208.6% during the 2nd quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 126 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 134,662 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.70, for a total transaction of $31,605,171.40. Following the transaction, the insider owned 139,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,803,314.90. This trade represents a 49.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 122 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.00, for a total value of $31,598.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $3,085,096,889. This trade represents a 0.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 177,534 shares of company stock worth $42,194,197 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 28th. Northland Capmk downgraded Salesforce from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Salesforce from $325.00 to $305.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 17th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-eight have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $326.46.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of CRM opened at $262.34 on Friday. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $221.96 and a 52-week high of $367.09. The stock has a market cap of $245.81 billion, a PE ratio of 35.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $245.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $252.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $3.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $10.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.27 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 17.91% and a return on equity of 14.41%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.41 earnings per share. Salesforce has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.020-3.040 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 22.16%.

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.