Focus Financial Network Inc. Lowers Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Focus Financial Network Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,238 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 1,028 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,082,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Summit Trail Advisors LLC grew its stake in Salesforce by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 45,388 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $15,193,000 after acquiring an additional 2,647 shares in the last quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 82.7% in the 4th quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 137 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Panoramic Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce during the 4th quarter valued at about $223,000. Golden Road Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Salesforce during the fourth quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $415.00 price target (up previously from $385.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $315.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One investment 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $377.63.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total value of $246,480.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. This trade represents a 13.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.00, for a total transaction of $2,133,803.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 53,861 shares in the company, valued at $18,474,323. This trade represents a 10.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,111,420 shares of company stock worth $384,366,700 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $326.26 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $338.74 and a 200 day moving average of $301.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market capitalization of $312.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.31. Salesforce, Inc. has a 52 week low of $212.00 and a 52 week high of $369.00.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.