Starboard Value LP Sells 882,584 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Starboard Value LP trimmed its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 61.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 559,264 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 882,584 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises 3.4% of Starboard Value LP’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Starboard Value LP’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $186,979,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CRM. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.1%

NYSE CRM opened at $291.00 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $268.10 and its 200 day moving average is $307.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $279.76 billion, a PE ratio of 47.86, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.42. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. This is a boost from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 26.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,909 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.58, for a total transaction of $543,263.22. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,218,599.80. The trade was a 14.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total value of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. The trade was a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 52,527 shares of company stock valued at $14,882,976. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CRM. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $210.00 price objective on the stock. DA Davidson reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $315.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Guggenheim upgraded Salesforce from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-two have issued a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $352.62.

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.