AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its position in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM – Free Report) by 127.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,527 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,775 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $2,259,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $287,000. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 6,239 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,653,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Conning Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 19,977 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,292,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 137.5% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,563 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,798,000 after buying an additional 6,115 shares during the period. Finally, Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 92,034 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $24,381,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.
Salesforce News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Salesforce’s stock rose after reports highlighted expanding AI momentum, solid financial performance, and a newly announced U.S. Air Force contract that bolsters confidence in demand for Agentforce and secure government cloud tools. Why Salesforce stock was surging today?
- Positive Sentiment: Salesforce secured a $72 million U.S. Air Force agreement as part of a broader Department of Defense contract, expanding its footprint in highly regulated government environments and validating its AI platform for mission-critical workflows. Salesforce’s Air Force Deal Tests Agentforce’s Role In Secure Government AI
- Positive Sentiment: Salesforce also gained attention after a new partnership with Moderna to use Agentforce Life Sciences to unify global operations, reinforcing the company’s AI and industry-specific software expansion. Salesforce (CRM), Moderna Partner to Unify Global Operations via Agentforce Life Sciences
- Neutral Sentiment: Multiple articles pointed to Salesforce as a long-term value and trending stock, suggesting continued investor interest rather than a new fundamental catalyst. Why Salesforce (CRM) is a Top Value Stock for the Long-Term
- Negative Sentiment: Citi trimmed its price target on Salesforce to $188 from $200, citing weak enterprise software spending trends, which is a reminder that the broader software demand backdrop remains mixed. Citi Cuts PT on Salesforce (CRM) From $200 To $188 Amid Weak Enterprise Software Spending Trends
Insider Activity
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $210.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Truist Financial set a $280.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $365.00 to $320.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Salesforce from $200.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $278.82.
Salesforce Stock Up 3.7%
Shares of CRM stock opened at $173.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $184.17 and its 200-day moving average is $215.65. The stock has a market cap of $142.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.25, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.14. Salesforce Inc. has a 52-week low of $163.52 and a 52-week high of $292.17.
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The CRM provider reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.05 by $0.76. The company had revenue of $11.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.18 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 17.96% and a return on equity of 15.38%. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.78 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 13.110-13.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.110-3.130 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 9.71 EPS for the current year.
Salesforce declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, March 16th that allows the company to buyback $25.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the CRM provider to buy up to 14.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.
Salesforce Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 22.54%.
Salesforce 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.
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