Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Decreases Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC lowered its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,618 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 96 shares during the quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $2,547,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRM. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 85.1% in the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM opened at $309.54 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $333.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $305.72. 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 company has a market cap of $296.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.31. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. Salesforce’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.62 EPS. Research analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 6,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,202,758.58. This represents a 7.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $328.18, for a total value of $2,041,607.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,342,415. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,102,833 shares of company stock valued at $381,389,136. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CRM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $340.00 to $430.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Salesforce from $390.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Guggenheim downgraded Salesforce from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $247.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-two have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $375.53.

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.