KPP Advisory Services LLC Grows Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

KPP Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 6.0% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 7,339 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 418 shares during the period. KPP Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $2,009,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Piscataqua Savings Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 816.7% in the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its holdings in Salesforce by 300.0% in the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Salesforce in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM traded down $6.39 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $325.26. 7,093,003 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,319,677. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.00 and a 1-year high of $348.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $310.95 billion, a PE ratio of 56.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $286.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $266.64.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.63 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 27.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $18,156,600.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 144,373 shares of company stock valued at $41,250,680 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Wedbush raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. FBN Securities upgraded shares of Salesforce to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $322.51.

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.