BDF Gestion Lowers Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

BDF Gestion lowered its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 11.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,137 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 3,266 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises 0.8% of BDF Gestion’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. BDF Gestion’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $8,404,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Veritas Asset Management LLP bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the third quarter worth approximately $733,805,000. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 46.7% in the 4th quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 3,829,773 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,280,408,000 after buying an additional 1,219,254 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Salesforce by 171.2% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,634,834 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $447,470,000 after buying an additional 1,032,068 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Salesforce by 23,664.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,002,848 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $274,490,000 after acquiring an additional 998,628 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM stock opened at $354.14 on Thursday. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $337.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $296.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $338.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider R David Schmaier sold 1,785 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $344.00, for a total transaction of $614,040.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,116 shares in the company, valued at $6,575,904. The trade was a 8.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.23, for a total transaction of $145,115.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 6,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,888,236.38. This trade represents a 7.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,109,169 shares of company stock worth $383,432,020. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on CRM shares. Northland Securities reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $440.00 target price (up previously from $400.00) on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $250.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. KeyCorp upgraded shares of 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. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded shares of Salesforce from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $247.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, thirty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $377.63.

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.