Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Guinness Asset Management LTD

Guinness Asset Management LTD reduced its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 140,422 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 2,454 shares during the period. Salesforce makes up about 0.7% of Guinness Asset Management LTD's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Guinness Asset Management LTD's holdings in Salesforce were worth $38,439,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 26.9% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,376,536 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $4,329,925,000 after acquiring an additional 3,044,611 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 1st quarter valued at about $910,220,000. Swedbank AB bought a new position in Salesforce in the first quarter worth approximately $874,748,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 48.3% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,906,877 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,518,658,000 after purchasing an additional 1,922,674 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 110.3% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 3,394,912 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $893,336,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780,421 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on CRM. Northland Securities raised Salesforce from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $270.00 to $400.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Evercore ISI restated an "outperform" rating and set a $300.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, August 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Piper Sandler lowered shares of Salesforce from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $310.74.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, Director Maynard G. Webb, Jr. sold 9,170 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.32, for a total transaction of $2,533,854.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,363 shares in the company, valued at $376,624.16. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $105,637.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,644,921.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Maynard G. Webb, Jr. sold 9,170 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $276.32, for a total value of $2,533,854.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,363 shares of the company's stock, valued at $376,624.16. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 80,612 shares of company stock worth $21,283,087 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE CRM traded down $2.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $288.10. The stock had a trading volume of 3,597,035 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,491,262. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $193.68 and a 1 year high of $318.71. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $261.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $263.88. The firm has a market cap of $275.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.63 EPS. Salesforce's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.83%.

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.