Swiss National Bank Raises Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 0.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,876,177 shares of the CRM provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,200 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up 0.5% of Swiss National Bank's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Swiss National Bank owned 0.30% of Salesforce worth $787,238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Piscataqua Savings Bank increased its position in Salesforce by 2,400.0% in the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 816.7% in the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Godsey & Gibb Inc. lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Salesforce during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC increased its stake in shares of Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of CRM traded down $6.39 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $325.26. The company had a trading volume of 7,093,003 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,164,433. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52-week low of $212.00 and a 52-week high of $348.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $286.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $266.61. The firm has a market cap of $310.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Salesforce Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,741.74. The trade was a 5.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 2,934 shares of the company's 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at $977,122.20. This trade represents a 44.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 144,373 shares of company stock worth $41,250,680. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on CRM. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Salesforce from $305.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. Raymond James increased their price objective on Salesforce from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Phillip Securities reaffirmed an "accumulate" rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $335.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $322.51.

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.