Xponance Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Xponance Inc. lowered its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 195,605 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 4,556 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises about 0.6% of Xponance Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $51,471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. raised its position in Salesforce by 333.3% during the 4th quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 130 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 892.9% during the 4th quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glass Jacobson Investment Advisors llc purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total value of $60,201.36. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $799,618.99. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, COO Brian Millham sold 393 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total transaction of $110,040.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total transaction of $60,201.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 2,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $799,618.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 907,149 shares of company stock worth $262,952,448 over the last 90 days. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on CRM shares. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Salesforce from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $290.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $265.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $350.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. Finally, Argus lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $354.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $307.87.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.6 %

NYSE:CRM traded down $4.40 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $271.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,746,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,688,916. The stock has a market cap of $263.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.28. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $190.57 and a twelve month high of $318.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $298.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $260.89.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $9.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 11.87%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.01 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.52%.

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.