Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) Shares Acquired by Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 36.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,346 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 356 shares during the quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $450,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Kelly Lawrence W & Associates Inc. CA now owns 12,234 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $4,090,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Landing Point Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter worth about $210,000. Mirova increased its stake in Salesforce by 18.3% during the 4th quarter. Mirova now owns 17,842 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,965,000 after buying an additional 2,758 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 170,816 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $57,109,000 after acquiring an additional 16,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ostrum Asset Management lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 41.6% in the fourth quarter. Ostrum Asset Management now owns 7,299 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,440,000 after acquiring an additional 2,145 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now owns 36,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. This trade represents a 16.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total value of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 47,654 shares of company stock worth $14,124,094. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Shares of CRM opened at $243.10 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $277.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $308.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $233.62 billion, a PE ratio of 39.98, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.38. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1 year low of $212.00 and a 1 year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on CRM. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Salesforce from $330.00 to $300.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Salesforce from $405.00 to $393.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.49.

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.