Stevens Capital Management LP Lowers Stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Stevens Capital Management LP reduced its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 64.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 7,333 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 13,325 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for 1.0% of Stevens Capital Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Stevens Capital Management LP’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $2,452,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Salesforce in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% during the fourth 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 shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new stake in Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $281.56 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $270.58 billion, a PE ratio of 46.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week high of $369.00. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $313.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $309.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on CRM. Guggenheim reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $247.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $450.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Salesforce from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $362.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, Director Robin L. Washington purchased 1,695 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $294.61 per share, for a total transaction of $499,363.95. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 43,445 shares in the company, valued at $12,799,331.45. This represents a 4.06 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.37, for a total value of $1,725,518.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,967,047.50. This trade represents a 11.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 60,256 shares of company stock valued at $19,692,357 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

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.