Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Sold by Beech Hill Advisors Inc.

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,465 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 270 shares during the quarter. Salesforce accounts for 1.8% of Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $4,836,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 135.6% in the third quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the third quarter worth approximately $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE CRM traded down $0.98 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $320.18. 256,059 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,635,833. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The business’s 50 day moving average is $336.76 and its 200-day moving average is $290.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $306.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly 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). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 18th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 26.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on CRM shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Salesforce from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $376.05.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 5.57 % 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, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.82, for a total transaction of $1,213,044.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 118,514 shares in the company, valued at $34,229,213.48. This trade represents a 3.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,177,617 shares of company stock valued at $403,542,975. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.