Norges Bank Invests $3.60 Billion in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Norges Bank purchased a new position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 10,767,405 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,599,867,000. Salesforce makes up approximately 0.5% of Norges Bank’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Norges Bank owned 1.13% of Salesforce at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of CRM. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at $1,173,564,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Salesforce by 52.7% in the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,433,785 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $1,482,347,000 after buying an additional 1,530,572 shares during the period. Swedbank AB raised its position in Salesforce by 46.7% during 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 last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Salesforce by 56,872.2% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 933,204 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $311,998,000 after acquiring an additional 931,566 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake 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 worth $13,432,855,000 after acquiring an additional 864,193 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CRM has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $380.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. TD Cowen raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $380.00 to $400.00 in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $425.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on Salesforce from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, thirty-one have issued a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $362.74.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.37, for a total transaction of $1,725,518.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,967,047.50. This represents a 11.74 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,344,899.96. This represents a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 43,875 shares of company stock valued at $13,580,649. 3.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Salesforce Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of CRM opened at $280.93 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $311.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $310.74. The stock has a market cap of $269.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.00 and a 1-year high of $369.00.

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.