IPG Investment Advisors LLC Buys 3,157 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

IPG Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 24.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,023 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,157 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises about 1.2% of IPG Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. IPG Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $5,363,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 85.1% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 87 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price objective on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Northland Securities reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 target price (up from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $362.74.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.34, for a total transaction of $514,686.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,416,644.60. This trade represents a 5.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Salesforce Trading Down 2.8 %

CRM opened at $270.04 on Friday. Salesforce, Inc. has a one year low of $212.00 and a one year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $259.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $309.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $311.13.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.10%.

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.