AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 57,914 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

AQR Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 7.5% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 718,902 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 57,914 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $184,808,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Salesforce by 76.4% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 13,708,615 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,607,493,000 after acquiring an additional 5,935,973 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in Salesforce by 26.9% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,376,536 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,329,925,000 after purchasing an additional 3,044,611 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at $910,220,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at $874,748,000. Finally, Coatue Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $564,188,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:CRM opened at $274.09 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $193.68 and a 1-year high of $318.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $262.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.30, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $254.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $265.66.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 28.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Phillip Securities restated an “accumulate” rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, August 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $234.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $315.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 5,735 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.22, for a total transaction of $1,526,771.70. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 1,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $442,723.86. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $105,637.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,644,921.18. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 5,735 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.22, for a total transaction of $1,526,771.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,663 shares in the company, valued at $442,723.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 65,033 shares of company stock worth $16,699,397. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.