6,019 Salesforce Inc. $CRM Shares Sold by Heritage Investors Management Corp

Heritage Investors Management Corp trimmed its holdings in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 3.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 194,534 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 6,019 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for about 1.3% of Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $44,659,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Latitude Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd bought a new stake in Salesforce in the second quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Costello Asset Management INC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 410.3% in the first quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 148 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Blair Kirk bought 4,176 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $239.33 per share, for a total transaction of $999,442.08. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 18,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,486,958.84. This trade represents a 28.66% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Craig Conway sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $260.61, for a total value of $1,172,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 5,437 shares in the company, valued at $1,416,936.57. The trade was a 45.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 3.50% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $228.56 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $238.94 and its 200 day moving average is $198.88. Salesforce Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.32 and a 52 week high of $269.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The company has a market cap of $188.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.84, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.24.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The CRM provider reported $5.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $2.63. The business had revenue of $11.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.33 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 21.99% and a return on equity of 24.90%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.91 EPS. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 16.670-16.710 EPS and its Q3 2027 guidance at 3.420-3.440 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 12.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 17th were paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 17th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is 16.04%.

Key Stories Impacting Salesforce

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Salesforce signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rune Technologies, a defense-technology company. The deal supports Salesforce’s push into military and government applications, potentially expanding its addressable market and adding a specialized technology platform. Financial terms were not disclosed. Salesforce Signs Definitive Agreement to Acquire Rune Technologies
• Positive Sentiment: TPM Holdings completed an 18-month realignment centered on Salesforce CRM and artificial intelligence for the architecture, engineering and construction industries. Its combination of TrebleHook and The Hunley Group could expand Salesforce-based implementations and demonstrate growing demand for industry-specific AI tools. TPM Holdings Accelerates Investment in AI and Salesforce CRM
• Positive Sentiment: Several analyst and investment articles describe Salesforce as a potential AI rebound candidate, citing autonomous AI agents, improving monetization, strong free cash flow and its leadership in customer relationship management. These views may support longer-term sentiment, although they are not new company guidance. AI Comeback Story Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Salesforce’s earnings report is approaching, making upcoming revenue growth, AI adoption, margins and forward guidance the main near-term catalysts. The company’s latest reported quarter included revenue of $11.35 billion and adjusted earnings that exceeded consensus estimates. Salesforce Earnings Preview
• Negative Sentiment: Salesforce declined in sympathy with ServiceNow, Fortinet and other software stocks after investors focused on slower contracted-revenue growth despite earnings beats and higher AI targets. The reaction has renewed concerns about enterprise-software demand, AI monetization timelines and elevated sector valuations. ServiceNow Results Dent Software Stocks

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on CRM. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $250.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Yorkville Ives initiated coverage on Salesforce in a research note on Monday, October 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $290.00 target price for the company. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on Salesforce from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $278.98.

Salesforce Profile

Salesforce, Inc (NYSE: CRM) is a global enterprise software company that provides cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) technology. Its platform helps organizations manage sales, customer service, marketing, commerce, data, analytics and interactions with customers across digital and traditional channels.

The company’s products include Sales Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud and Data Cloud. Salesforce also offers Tableau for data visualization and analytics, MuleSoft for application integration, and Slack for workplace collaboration.