Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases Shares of 286,787 Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 286,787 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $96,056,000. Salesforce makes up about 0.6% of Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Notis McConarty Edward acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth approximately $749,000. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR raised its holdings in Salesforce by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR now owns 24,779 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $8,284,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Lynwood Price Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $13,708,000. Kidder Stephen W acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,313,000. Finally, Leeward Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $223,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on CRM. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $361.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Oscar Munoz acquired 3,882 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $257.28 per share, for a total transaction of $998,760.96. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 11,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,046,967.04. This trade represents a 48.76 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.94, for a total value of $167,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,202,758.58. The trade was a 7.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 45,660 shares of company stock valued at $14,095,336 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $240.26 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $230.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. 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 stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $302.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $311.00. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.10%.

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.