Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Grows Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 20.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,122,945 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 193,713 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up approximately 0.7% of Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $375,434,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 85.1% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $279.54 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $267.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $307.15. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market cap of $268.75 billion, a PE ratio of 45.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.42.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 26.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Guggenheim upgraded Salesforce from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. DA Davidson reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Monday, April 21st. Bank of America dropped their price target on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Macquarie reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $320.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-two have given a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $350.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total value of $2,041,607.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at $15,342,415. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $137,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 11,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,220,525. This trade represents a 4.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 45,830 shares of company stock worth $12,907,361. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.