Suncoast Equity Management Has $43.59 Million Stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Suncoast Equity Management reduced its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 130,376 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 1,447 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises about 4.9% of Suncoast Equity Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Suncoast Equity Management's holdings in Salesforce were worth $43,589,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 85.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock traded down $8.89 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $309.54. 7,341,387 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,249,096. The firm has a market cap of $296.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.91, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.31. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $334.23 and a 200 day moving average of $304.76. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 company 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%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.62 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Northland Securities restated an "outperform" rating and set a $440.00 price objective (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Macquarie restated a "neutral" rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded Salesforce from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a report on Friday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $375.53.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total transaction of $2,041,607.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at $15,342,415. The trade was a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total value of $246,480.39. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,659 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. This trade represents a 13.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,102,833 shares of company stock worth $381,389,136 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.