abrdn plc Has $342.31 Million Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

abrdn plc decreased its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,020,700 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 85,042 shares during the period. Salesforce makes up about 0.6% of abrdn plc’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. abrdn plc owned approximately 0.11% of Salesforce worth $342,307,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nvest Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Nvest Financial LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $938,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Sachetta LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 11,018 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $3,684,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,860,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. EWA LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,001 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $548,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Muirfield Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,457 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $487,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CRM. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $390.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on shares of Salesforce from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $377.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other news, COO Brian Millham sold 708 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $235,254.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 1,239 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $411,694.92. This represents a 36.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,899.96. This represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,104,699 shares of company stock valued at $382,108,847. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Salesforce Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $339.28 on Tuesday. 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 52 week low of $212.00 and a 52 week high of $369.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $338.67 and its 200 day moving average is $297.99. The company has a market cap of $324.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.80, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last issued 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 company had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.35 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.96% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

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

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.