Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock Holdings Increased by Smith Moore & CO.

Smith Moore & CO. grew its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 10.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,627 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. Smith Moore & CO.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $544,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th 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 bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Brian Millham sold 3,937 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 5,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,570,312.44. This trade represents a 41.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336 in the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Trading Down 5.9 %

CRM stock opened at $240.26 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $230.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $302.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $311.39. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is 26.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $345.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. TD Cowen upgraded Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $361.42.

Salesforce Company Profile

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.