Parnassus Investments LLC Has $1.49 Billion Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Parnassus Investments LLC lowered its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 10.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,436,052 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 619,610 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for approximately 3.2% of Parnassus Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Parnassus Investments LLC owned about 0.57% of Salesforce worth $1,487,902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 26.9% in 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 purchasing an additional 3,044,611 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,116,449 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $4,251,592,000 after purchasing an additional 407,834 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,329,687 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $2,141,562,000 after purchasing an additional 176,641 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 48.3% in the 2nd 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, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 25.1% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,378,826 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $1,125,331,000 after purchasing an additional 877,495 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 2,934 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.95, for a total transaction of $771,495.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $977,122.20. This trade represents a 44.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 140,173 shares of company stock worth $40,146,206. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Phillip Securities reaffirmed an "accumulate" rating and set a $305.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Salesforce from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Northland Capmk raised shares of Salesforce from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $325.36.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:CRM traded up $1.04 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $323.29. The stock had a trading volume of 5,467,790 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,306,689. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market cap of $309.07 billion, a PE ratio of 56.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.29. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $348.86. The company's 50 day moving average is $288.14 and its 200-day moving average is $266.96.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio is presently 27.83%.

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.