KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Has $91.46 Million Stock Position in Salesforce Inc. $CRM

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 0.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 385,343 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,300 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $91,463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the second quarter worth about $2,826,049,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 27,361.5% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,424,169 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $933,737,000 after purchasing an additional 3,411,700 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 1,729.6% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,973,141 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $538,020,000 after buying an additional 1,865,297 shares during the period. Amundi raised its holdings in Salesforce by 26.2% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 7,755,317 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,087,545,000 after buying an additional 1,612,413 shares during the period. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its stake in Salesforce by 45.8% in the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 3,931,945 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,072,202,000 after buying an additional 1,234,969 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 2,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.20, for a total value of $580,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 11,911,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,075,567,632.20. This trade represents a 0.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director G Mason Morfit bought 96,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $260.58 per share, for a total transaction of $25,015,680.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,994,509 shares in the company, valued at $780,309,155.22. The trade was a 3.31% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 157,284 shares of company stock valued at $37,274,684 over the last 90 days. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CRM shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Salesforce from $360.00 to $340.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Northland Securities lifted their price target on Salesforce from $264.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Arete Research raised Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded Salesforce from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $327.74.

Salesforce News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are turning more upbeat and raising price targets, which supports buyer interest and can drive near-term upside. Analysts love Salesforce stock and are raising their price targets
• Positive Sentiment: MarketBeat / MSN pieces argue CRM is set for a comeback in 2026 — citing AI exposure, institutional accumulation, buybacks/dividend increases and attractive longer-term upside — giving investors a clear bull narrative. 5 Reasons Salesforce Could Be One of 2026’s Best Trades
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary highlights strong institutional ownership and signs of accumulation, which can stabilize the stock and amplify rebounds when sentiment improves. 5 reasons Salesforce could be one of 2026’s best trades
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation pieces are reassessing CRM after recent weakness — they note the stock pulled back on AI concerns but still see long-term value depending on growth assumptions, so risk/reward hinges on conviction in Salesforce’s AI monetization. Assessing Salesforce (CRM) Valuation After Recent AI Jitters And Share Price Weakness
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry write-ups portray Salesforce as a contender amid AI disruption fears — supportive for long-term holders but flagging execution and competitive risks that deserve monitoring. Salesforce, Inc.: A Strong Contender for Growth Amidst AI Disruption Fears
• Neutral Sentiment: Opinion/analysis pieces urge diligence on specific AI initiatives and partners (e.g., third‑party offerings like Agentforce), signaling that not all AI-related moves are immediate catalysts. Salesforce: Take A Good Look At Agentforce Before You Invest
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage noting an early‑2026 pullback and headlines about a multi‑percent decline underscore lingering investor concern about AI disruption and 2025 performance — such headlines can trigger short‑term selling and higher volatility. Salesforce and Adobe Start 2026 With a 5% Plunge—Should Investors Buy or Bail?
• Negative Sentiment: Articles flagging the recent pullback and warning that institutional holders might react could presage more selling if guidance or early‑year results disappoint. Salesforce, Inc.’s (NYSE:CRM) recent 3.6% pullback adds to one-year year losses, institutional owners may take drastic measures

Salesforce Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $262.86 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $246.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.26. 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 Inc. has a 12-month low of $221.96 and a 12-month high of $367.09. The business’s 50 day moving average is $249.96 and its 200-day moving average is $251.54.

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

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 18th will be given a dividend of $0.416 per share. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 22.16%.

Salesforce Profile

Salesforce, founded in 1999 and headquartered in San Francisco, is a global provider of cloud-based software focused on customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise applications. The company popularized the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model for CRM and has built a broad portfolio of products designed to help organizations manage sales, service, marketing, commerce and analytics through a unified, cloud-first platform.

Core offerings include Sales Cloud for sales automation, Service Cloud for customer support, Marketing Cloud for digital marketing and engagement, and Commerce Cloud for e-commerce.