Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock Holdings Lifted by Beacon Financial Advisory LLC

Beacon Financial Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 3.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,182 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $585,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Athena Investment Management bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Jag Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 2,507.9% during the 4th quarter. Jag Capital Management LLC now owns 23,706 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $7,926,000 after purchasing an additional 22,797 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its position in Salesforce by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 27,358 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $9,146,000 after buying an additional 723 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $823,000. Finally, Heartland Bank & Trust Co lifted its stake in Salesforce by 117.2% in the first quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,981 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,605,000 after buying an additional 3,227 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $270.50 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $269.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $295.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $258.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.33, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $230.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.74 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 16.08%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be given a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.98%.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,256 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $318,157.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 12,826 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,248,954.06. This trade represents a 8.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 6,697 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.00, for a total transaction of $1,975,615.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 41,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,219,490. This trade represents a 13.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 26,284 shares of company stock worth $6,996,762 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $404.00 price target (up previously from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Northland Securities dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $423.00 to $396.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Mizuho cut their price target on Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Salesforce from $367.00 to $350.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $349.08.

Salesforce 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.