Federated Hermes Inc. Buys 6,525 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 418,196 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,525 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $110,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. lifted its stake in Salesforce by 333.3% in the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 130 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 30.4% during the 4th quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 270 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Live Oak Investment Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on CRM shares. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $345.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Monday. TheStreet raised Salesforce from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Salesforce from $290.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Salesforce from $260.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $360.00 target price (up previously from $275.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has given 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 target price of $307.87.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM traded down $2.90 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $273.42. 1,712,987 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,651,236. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $190.57 and a 12 month high of $318.71. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $298.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $260.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.22 billion, a PE ratio of 65.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.28.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 11.87%. The company had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.52%.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total value of $60,201.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $799,618.99. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 216 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.71, for a total value of $60,201.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 2,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $799,618.99. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Brian Millham sold 293,965 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.00, for a total value of $82,310,200.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 907,149 shares of company stock worth $262,952,448 in the last ninety days. 3.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.