Auxano Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Auxano Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 835 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $279,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nvest Financial LLC raised its position in Salesforce by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $938,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. OMC Financial Services LTD grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. OMC Financial Services LTD now owns 11,390 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 787 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Sachetta LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 11,018 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,684,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Finally, Prossimo Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 3,366 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,125,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Macquarie cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $370.00 to $320.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Salesforce from $345.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price target (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $365.32.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock opened at $297.63 on Monday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.00 and a 1-year high of $369.00. The company’s 50-day moving average is $329.11 and its 200 day moving average is $307.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $284.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.16%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total value of $2,041,607.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,342,415. The trade was a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 458 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.97, for a total value of $141,050.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,864 shares in the company, valued at $1,805,936.08. The trade was a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,102,572 shares of company stock worth $381,283,706. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce 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.