First Trust Advisors LP Has $607.16 Million Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

First Trust Advisors LP decreased its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,816,051 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 14,999 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for about 0.5% of First Trust Advisors LP's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.19% of Salesforce worth $607,160,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,599,867,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,173,564,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Salesforce by 42.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,791,015 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $2,604,770,000 after buying an additional 2,325,156 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 52.7% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,433,785 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $1,482,347,000 after buying an additional 1,530,572 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 46.7% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 3,829,773 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,280,408,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219,254 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $246.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market cap of $237.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $281.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $309.39. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is 26.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the firm's 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 $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $167,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,202,758.58. This represents a 7.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 47,654 shares of company stock valued at $14,124,094. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Salesforce from $275.00 to $250.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $247.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $360.32.

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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