Benjamin Edwards Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. reduced its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,092 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 68 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $281,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 186.7% during the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its position in Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the period. Red Tortoise LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce during the first quarter worth $33,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised 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 during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $325.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $335.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $306.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,644,921.18. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Salesforce news, COO Brian Millham sold 1,678 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.32, for a total transaction of $406,612.96. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $402,735.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 $1,644,921.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 66,576 shares of company stock valued at $16,957,573. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $266.80 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $254.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $266.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $258.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.99, a PEG ratio of 2.26 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.78%.

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.