Gifford Fong Associates raised its stake in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM – Free Report) by 15.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 73,009 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises 3.9% of Gifford Fong Associates’ holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Gifford Fong Associates’ holdings in Salesforce were worth $19,341,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 25,668 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $8,582,000 after purchasing an additional 3,102 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $611,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Bison Wealth LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $747,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 3.7% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,958 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $807,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, United Bank raised its position in Salesforce by 5.2% during the second quarter. United Bank now owns 10,198 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,781,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Salesforce Trading Down 0.1%
CRM opened at $191.00 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $180.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $210.36. The company has a market capitalization of $156.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.11, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.16. Salesforce Inc. has a 52 week low of $163.52 and a 52 week high of $276.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.
Salesforce Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.37%.
Salesforce announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, March 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $25.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the CRM provider to reacquire up to 14.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Salesforce from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Salesforce from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $281.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $257.97.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on Salesforce
Key Salesforce News
Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Salesforce beat fiscal Q1 expectations, with revenue rising 13% year over year to $11.13 billion and EPS of $3.88 topping estimates, reinforcing that demand remains healthy. CRM Q1 Earnings Top Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y on ARR Milestone
- Positive Sentiment: The company said Agentforce annual recurring revenue crossed $1 billion and lifted FY2027 revenue guidance, suggesting its AI products are starting to contribute meaningfully to growth. Salesforce raises FY 2027 revenue guide to $45.9B-$46.2B while launching $25B accelerated share repurchase
- Positive Sentiment: Salesforce announced a $25 billion accelerated share repurchase program and highlighted $6.6 billion in free cash flow, signaling strong cash generation and shareholder returns. Salesforce Announces Quarterly Dividend
- Positive Sentiment: New customer and partner headlines, including CVS Health expanding use of Salesforce’s Agentforce Health, support the view that the company’s AI platform is gaining traction. CVS Health to Deliver Faster, More Personalized Call Center Care for Millions of Members with Salesforce’s Agentforce Health
- Neutral Sentiment: Several analysts remained constructive, but many trimmed price targets after the report, reflecting a more cautious stance on near-term upside. Salesforce Q1 Results ‘Uninspiring’: ‘Nothing To Dispel The AI Threat Narrative’
- Negative Sentiment: Investors were disappointed by Q2 revenue guidance, which came in slightly below expectations, keeping the stock under pressure despite the earnings beat. CRM Stock Dips After-Hours As Q2 Revenue Outlook Marginally Misses Expectations
- Negative Sentiment: Bearish commentary continues to focus on the risk that AI agents could eventually disrupt Salesforce’s core revenue model, which is weighing on sentiment. Analyst warns Salesforce has an AI problem
Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce
In related news, Director David Blair Kirk bought 2,570 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $194.62 per share, with a total value of $500,173.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 13,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,664,153.18. The trade was a 23.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laura Alber bought 2,571 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $194.58 per share, for a total transaction of $500,265.18. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,854,347.40. This represents a 36.94% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Salesforce Company 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.
Further Reading
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- 3 Dividend Kings That Earn Their Crown Every Quarter
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