L & S Advisors Inc Buys 18,542 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

L & S Advisors Inc grew its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 290.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 24,935 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,542 shares during the period. Salesforce comprises about 0.9% of L & S Advisors Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. L & S Advisors Inc’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $8,337,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nvest Financial LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $938,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. OMC Financial Services LTD boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. OMC Financial Services LTD now owns 11,390 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,808,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 787 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Sachetta LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 11,018 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,684,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prossimo Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 3,366 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,125,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares during the period. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Salesforce from $345.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target (up previously from $380.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $362.74.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $270.04 on Friday. 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 firm’s 50-day moving average price is $309.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $310.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $259.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.00 and a 1-year high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total transaction of $2,089,882.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at $15,705,195. This trade represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock valued at $14,095,336. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.