AJOVista LLC Takes $204,000 Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

AJOVista LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 775 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $204,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bear Mountain Capital Inc. bought a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. grew its holdings in Salesforce by 333.3% in the fourth quarter. Pacifica Partners Inc. now owns 130 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

Shares of CRM traded up $1.53 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $273.66. 4,041,636 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,219,539. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $190.76 and a 1-year high of $318.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The company has a 50 day moving average of $294.23 and a 200-day moving average of $266.17. The stock has a market cap of $264.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.30.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The CRM provider reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. Salesforce had a net margin of 11.87% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The company had revenue of $9.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.01 EPS. Salesforce’s revenue was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CRM has been the topic of several analyst reports. TheStreet raised shares of Salesforce from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Friday, January 19th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $300.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $350.00 price objective (up from $325.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $310.61.

Insider Activity at Salesforce

In other news, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 942 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.46, for a total value of $287,743.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 39,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,040,011.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $285.20, for a total transaction of $2,852,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 60,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,230,643.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 942 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.46, for a total transaction of $287,743.32. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 39,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,040,011.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 629,993 shares of company stock valued at $184,255,474. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

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.