Federated Hermes Inc. Increases Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 13.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 397,949 shares of the CRM provider's stock after buying an additional 47,478 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.'s holdings in Salesforce were worth $133,046,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,599,867,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,173,564,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 52.7% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,433,785 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,482,347,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530,572 shares during the period. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 46.7% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 3,829,773 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,280,408,000 after buying an additional 1,219,254 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 27.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,598,423 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,871,721,000 after buying an additional 1,204,355 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded down $11.08 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $253.67. 4,525,060 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,767,016. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $292.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $310.70. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The company has a market cap of $243.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.79, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. This is a boost from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce's payout ratio is presently 26.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Macquarie reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Salesforce from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $361.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $298,055.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,534,090. This represents a 1.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 652 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $216,646.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,467 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,361,054.76. The trade was a 0.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. 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.