Gunderson Capital Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Gunderson Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 11,992 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,009,000. Salesforce comprises approximately 2.0% of Gunderson Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,215,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 13.6% during the third quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 58,036 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $15,885,000 after acquiring an additional 6,938 shares during the period. Aljian Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Salesforce by 16.1% during the third quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC now owns 13,258 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,629,000 after acquiring an additional 1,834 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd boosted its position in Salesforce by 8.9% in the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 24,028 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $6,577,000 after purchasing an additional 1,962 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,395,132,000 after purchasing an additional 257,501 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Marc Benioff sold 317,105 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.78, for a total transaction of $109,965,671.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,162,457 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,217,696,838.46. This trade represents a 2.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 897 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were 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 $15,100,399.70. This represents a 1.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,177,617 shares of company stock valued at $403,542,975 over the last quarter. 3.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of CRM opened at $319.39 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $305.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.53, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $336.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $290.19.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its 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 firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.62 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on CRM shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Macquarie reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $370.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price target (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, thirty have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $376.05.

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.