Vista Capital Partners Inc. Purchases New Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Vista Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 781 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at approximately $261,000.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total value of $246,480.39. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. This represents a 13.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total transaction of $2,041,607.78. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,342,415. The trade was a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,102,833 shares of company stock worth $381,389,136. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Trading Down 2.8 %

NYSE CRM traded down $8.89 during trading on Friday, hitting $309.54. The company had a trading volume of 7,341,387 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,249,096. The company's fifty day moving average is $333.34 and its 200-day moving average is $305.25. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year 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. The company has a market cap of $296.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.31.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.62 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. Salesforce's payout ratio is 26.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $360.00 to $330.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen raised 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. Macquarie reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $370.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $368.00 to $390.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One equities research 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $375.53.

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.