Magnetar Financial LLC Purchases New Stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,903 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $636,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. State Street Corp grew its position in Salesforce by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,007,404 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $13,432,855,000 after acquiring an additional 864,193 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,395,132,000 after acquiring an additional 257,501 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,163,703,000 after acquiring an additional 177,321 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Salesforce by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,066,354 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,028,164,000 after acquiring an additional 153,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in Salesforce by 52.7% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,433,785 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $1,482,347,000 after acquiring an additional 1,530,572 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Salesforce stock opened at $281.56 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $313.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $309.49. Salesforce, Inc. has a 12-month low of $212.00 and a 12-month high of $369.00. The company has a market capitalization of $270.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America reduced their price target on Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Salesforce from $300.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. KeyCorp upgraded Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, December 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $362.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Salesforce news, COO Brian Millham sold 16,487 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $340.68, for a total value of $5,616,791.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 1,662 shares in the company, valued at $566,210.16. This represents a 90.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.00, for a total value of $2,133,803.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 53,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,474,323. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 60,256 shares of company stock worth $19,692,357. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Profile

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.