Financial Counselors Inc. Grows Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Financial Counselors Inc. grew its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 169,323 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,817 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $46,345,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Piscataqua Savings Bank boosted its stake in Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 3,125.0% during the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM stock opened at $330.01 on Thursday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $348.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a market cap of $315.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.39, a PEG ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $299.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $269.87.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Cfra set a $343.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price objective on Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Salesforce from $350.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded Salesforce from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $341.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total transaction of $608,108.04. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 828 shares in the company, valued at $202,702.68. This trade represents a 75.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 60,522 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $18,156,600.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 144,510 shares of company stock valued at $42,475,538. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.