Magellan Asset Management Ltd Has $30.05 Million Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Magellan Asset Management Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 16.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 89,885 shares of the CRM provider's stock after selling 17,624 shares during the quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd's holdings in Salesforce were worth $30,051,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 36,473 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $12,194,000 after buying an additional 4,752 shares during the last quarter. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,215,000. Athena Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $236,000. Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $4,321,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $5,395,132,000 after buying an additional 257,501 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the subject of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. Stephens assumed coverage on Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $311.00 price objective for the company. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Macquarie restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $320.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $361.42.

Salesforce Stock Down 5.9 %

NYSE CRM traded down $14.97 during trading on Friday, hitting $240.26. 9,689,126 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,691,770. The company has a market capitalization of $230.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $302.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $311.39. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.10%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total value of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,861 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,128,626.68. This represents a 11.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.