Stifel Financial Corp Acquires 46,498 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,245,383 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 46,498 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned 0.13% of Salesforce worth $416,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% during the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 1,256 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total value of $318,157.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 12,826 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,248,954.06. The trade was a 8.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,090 shares in the company, valued at $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,051 shares of company stock valued at $15,027,714 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 5.5 %

CRM stock traded up $13.81 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $264.29. The stock had a trading volume of 7,846,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,797,031. The business has a 50-day moving average of $276.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $308.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market cap of $253.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. This is a positive change from Salesforce's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $315.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. DA Davidson reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $355.19.

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.