First County Bank CT Cuts Stock Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

First County Bank CT trimmed its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 6.1% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,282 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 407 shares during the period. First County Bank CT’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,615,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its position in Salesforce by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,659 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,489,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. Aveo Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 44.7% in the 4th quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,605 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 496 shares during the period. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,483 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,706,000 after buying an additional 1,253 shares in the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 32.4% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,960 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,064,000 after acquiring an additional 970 shares during the period. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV purchased a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $1,815,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock opened at $275.67 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $255.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $265.79. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $193.68 and a 52 week high of $318.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $263.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.58, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.29. 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 (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The company had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.78%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total value of $105,637.14. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,644,921.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $229,434.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,072,660.02. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total value of $105,637.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at $1,644,921.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 63,015 shares of company stock valued at $16,174,717 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on CRM shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $265.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $285.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays decreased their price target on Salesforce from $355.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Raymond James lifted 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. Eight investment 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.73.

About Salesforce

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.