Advisory Alpha LLC Boosts Stock Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Advisory Alpha LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 32.1% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,844 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $474,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 186.7% in the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 2,400.0% in the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC increased its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% in the second quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Red Tortoise LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC increased its position 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 valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $335.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $308.03.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $229,434.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 51,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,072,660.02. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.78, for a total transaction of $105,637.14. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,644,921.18. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the company’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 $229,434.66. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 51,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,072,660.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 67,985 shares of company stock worth $17,632,363 in the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM stock opened at $270.87 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a market capitalization of $262.47 billion, a PE ratio of 48.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.29. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $193.68 and a 12-month high of $318.71. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $256.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $264.65.

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

Salesforce Announces Dividend

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 dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.78%.

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.