Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co Increases Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co boosted its position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 50.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 150,000 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for about 0.4% of Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $50,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CRM. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its position in shares of Salesforce by 85.1% during the 4th 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 purchased a new stake in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CRM. Macquarie reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $320.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. KeyCorp upgraded Salesforce from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $440.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, December 13th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $311.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Salesforce from $415.00 to $380.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut 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. One 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $361.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total transaction of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 45,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,128,626.68. This trade represents a 11.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Oscar Munoz bought 3,882 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $257.28 per share, for a total transaction of $998,760.96. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 11,843 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,046,967.04. This represents a 48.76 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRM opened at $240.26 on Friday. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $212.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $302.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $311.00. The company has a market capitalization of $230.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. This is a boost from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.10%.

Salesforce Company 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.