California State Teachers Retirement System Sells 66,503 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

California State Teachers Retirement System reduced its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,484,542 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 66,503 shares during the period. Salesforce makes up about 0.6% of California State Teachers Retirement System's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.15% of Salesforce worth $496,327,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Brian Millham sold 979 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.66, for a total transaction of $248,333.14. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,487 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,645,492.42. The trade was a 13.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,051 shares of company stock valued at $15,027,714. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRM has been the topic of several analyst reports. DA Davidson reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, April 21st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $405.00 to $393.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Stephens started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $311.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $351.37.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $267.87 on Monday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $273.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $308.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $257.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Salesforce's payout ratio is presently 26.10%.

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.

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