Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Purchased by State of Alaska Department of Revenue

State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 112,565 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,925 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $30,810,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CRM. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 26.9% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,376,536 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,329,925,000 after purchasing an additional 3,044,611 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 1st quarter worth about $910,220,000. Swedbank AB purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at about $874,748,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 48.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,906,877 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,518,658,000 after acquiring an additional 1,922,674 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its stake in Salesforce by 376.1% during the second quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 1,442,453 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $370,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139,472 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Up 1.3 %

CRM stock opened at $290.46 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $269.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $263.05. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $193.68 and a 52 week high of $318.71. The company has a market cap of $281.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 15.44%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on CRM shares. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $295.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Salesforce from $260.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $312.51.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, COO Brian Millham sold 969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.56, for a total transaction of $277,676.64. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 969 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.56, for a total value of $277,676.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total transaction of $255,905.13. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 52,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,100,399.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 87,781 shares of company stock valued at $23,696,593 in the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by 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.