Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Stock Holdings Increased by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 3.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 985,770 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 33,371 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.10% of Salesforce worth $269,814,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Umpqua Bank raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 0.4% during the third quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 7,708 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Nvwm LLC raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 2,565 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Prentice Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,506 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $686,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 11.6% in the 3rd quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 357 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. increased its holdings in Salesforce by 0.4% in the third quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 9,269 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,537,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 3,970 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.74, for a total value of $1,178,057.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 119,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,431,349.48. This represents a 3.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 4,056 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.50, for a total value of $1,060,644.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 144,373 shares of company stock worth $41,250,680 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $345.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Wedbush upped their price target on Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Salesforce from $320.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $322.51.

Salesforce Stock Performance

NYSE:CRM opened at $325.26 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $310.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $348.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $286.61 and a 200-day moving average of $266.64.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.83%.

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.