Retirement Systems of Alabama Trims Stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 210,927 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 3,322 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama's holdings in Salesforce were worth $57,733,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter valued at about $15,894,000. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $821,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1,639.5% during the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 661 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $181,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 37.6% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 196,584 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $53,807,000 after acquiring an additional 53,739 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in Salesforce by 7.4% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 43,812 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $11,992,000 after purchasing an additional 3,021 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Salesforce from $315.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James boosted their price target on Salesforce from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Northland Capmk upgraded Salesforce from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $377.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.04, for a total transaction of $1,079,568.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 117,581 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,223,020.24. This trade represents a 3.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 138,498 shares of company stock valued at $40,983,349. Insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of CRM traded down $3.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $354.30. 5,536,744 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,407,457. The stock has a market capitalization of $339.07 billion, a PE ratio of 58.27, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $316.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $275.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $212.00 and a 52 week high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. Salesforce's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Salesforce Company 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.