New York State Common Retirement Fund Has $394.19 Million Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

New York State Common Retirement Fund trimmed its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,179,055 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 12,600 shares during the period. Salesforce comprises approximately 0.5% of New York State Common Retirement Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.12% of Salesforce worth $394,193,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $328.62 on Wednesday. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The company’s 50-day moving average is $335.64 and its 200 day moving average is $304.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $314.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.31.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 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. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total transaction of $167,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,557 shares in the company, valued at $2,202,758.58. This trade represents a 7.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 652 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $216,646.56. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 121,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,361,054.76. This trade represents a 0.53 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,111,420 shares of company stock worth $384,366,700. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on CRM shares. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Guggenheim downgraded Salesforce from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $247.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America raised their target price on Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research report on Friday, January 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $377.63.

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.