Patron Partners LLC Acquires 146 Shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Patron Partners LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,939 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the quarter. Patron Partners LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $648,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Salesforce during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 300.0% in the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 135.6% in the third quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 139 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at $55,000. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. The trade was a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total transaction of $246,480.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. The trade was a 13.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,104,699 shares of company stock worth $382,108,847. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of CRM stock opened at $339.28 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $324.69 billion, a PE ratio of 55.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12 month low of $212.00 and a 12 month high of $369.00. The business’s 50 day moving average is $338.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $297.99.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.03). Salesforce had a return on equity of 12.34% and a net margin of 15.96%. The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRM has been the topic of several analyst reports. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Salesforce from $315.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $377.63.

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.