Herbst Group LLC Has $3.01 Million Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Herbst Group LLC trimmed its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,010 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 1,100 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up about 1.9% of Herbst Group LLC's holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Herbst Group LLC's holdings in Salesforce were worth $3,012,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GM Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the second quarter valued at about $227,000. Bridges Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 263.7% during the second quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,714 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,212,000 after buying an additional 3,418 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Salesforce by 14.5% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 96,205 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $24,734,000 after buying an additional 12,193 shares during the period. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 9.2% in the second quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,557 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $658,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Columbus Hill Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 87.6% during the 2nd quarter. Columbus Hill Capital Management L.P. now owns 73,759 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $18,963,000 after acquiring an additional 34,435 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE CRM traded up $4.77 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $324.77. 6,283,814 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,604,853. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $337.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $291.80. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $310.81 billion, a PE ratio of 53.42, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.62 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.82, for a total transaction of $1,213,044.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 118,514 shares in the company, valued at $34,229,213.48. The trade was a 3.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 6,161 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.75, for a total transaction of $1,785,149.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $280,767.75. The trade was a 86.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,183,838 shares of company stock valued at $405,595,158 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CRM. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on Salesforce from $425.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Cfra set a $343.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $330.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, KeyCorp raised shares of Salesforce from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $440.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $377.63.

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.