Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Holdings Trimmed by Jackson Square Capital LLC

Jackson Square Capital LLC trimmed its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 34.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 753 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 395 shares during the period. Jackson Square Capital LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $202,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Griffin Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 332.2% in the 1st quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,965 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $796,000 after purchasing an additional 2,279 shares during the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 18,433 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,947,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. BigSur Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Salesforce by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. BigSur Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,700 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,140,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares during the last quarter. New England Research & Management Inc. acquired a new position in Salesforce during the 1st quarter worth $330,000. Finally, Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. lifted its position in Salesforce by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Ipswich Investment Management Co. Inc. now owns 3,698 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $992,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CRM shares. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Salesforce from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Salesforce from $320.00 to $295.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $350.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $346.34.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,141,957.90. This represents a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.37, for a total transaction of $1,725,518.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,967,047.50. This trade represents a 11.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 40,332 shares of company stock valued at $11,024,802. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Down 3.2%

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $258.25 on Friday. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $227.77 and a 52 week high of $369.00. 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 $246.89 billion, a PE ratio of 42.48, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $268.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $300.13.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.44 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a $0.416 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is presently 25.98%.

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.