Hancock Whitney Corp Buys 1,260 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 11.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,067 shares of the CRM provider's stock after buying an additional 1,260 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp's holdings in Salesforce were worth $4,034,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,473 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $12,194,000 after purchasing an additional 4,752 shares in the last quarter. Athena Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at about $236,000. Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $4,321,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,288,803 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $766,566,000 after acquiring an additional 243,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 15,708 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $5,252,000 after purchasing an additional 1,936 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Salesforce from $310.00 to $255.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $315.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Salesforce from $405.00 to $393.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Guggenheim raised shares of Salesforce from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $351.37.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $2,089,882.74. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,705,195. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian Millham sold 979 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.66, for a total value of $248,333.14. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,487 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,645,492.42. This trade represents a 13.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,051 shares of company stock valued at $15,027,714 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM traded up $3.17 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $267.87. 5,649,322 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,824,128. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $273.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $308.41. The stock has a market cap of $257.42 billion, a PE ratio of 44.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

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

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.