Baker Chad R Invests $2.94 Million in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Baker Chad R bought a new position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 8,790 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,939,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aviance Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,860,000 after buying an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC boosted its position in Salesforce by 1.7% in the third quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Umpqua Bank grew its stake in Salesforce by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 7,708 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,110,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Principal Street Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC now owns 3,297 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $891,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Northland Capmk upgraded shares of Salesforce from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on Salesforce from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Guggenheim downgraded Salesforce from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $247.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Salesforce from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $377.63.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This represents a 5.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 6,161 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.75, for a total value of $1,785,149.75. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $280,767.75. This represents a 86.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,183,838 shares of company stock worth $405,595,158 in the last ninety days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Price Performance

NYSE CRM traded up $4.77 on Friday, reaching $324.77. 6,283,814 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,604,853. The stock has a market cap of $310.81 billion, a PE ratio of 53.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $337.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $291.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. Salesforce's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

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.