Pointe Capital Management LLC Grows Position in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Pointe Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 45.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,886 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 897 shares during the quarter. Pointe Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $790,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CRM. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 186.7% during the 1st quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 86 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Piscataqua Savings Bank raised its stake in shares of Salesforce by 2,400.0% during the 2nd quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 100 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 816.7% in the 2nd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 110 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Red Tortoise LLC acquired a new position in Salesforce in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 3,125.0% in the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 129 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Salesforce Stock Performance

NYSE:CRM traded up $3.70 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $290.46. The stock had a trading volume of 3,351,560 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,334,725. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $269.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $263.05. The stock has a market cap of $281.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.24, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.30. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $193.68 and a twelve month high of $318.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.20. Salesforce had a net margin of 15.44% and a return on equity of 12.01%. The business had revenue of $9.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. Salesforce’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Salesforce, Inc. will post 7.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Salesforce from $250.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Salesforce from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $342.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Wedbush raised their target price on Salesforce from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Cfra set a $343.00 target price on Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-six have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Salesforce currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $312.51.

Insider Activity

In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.87, for a total value of $1,217,454.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 118,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $34,353,653.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $285.29, for a total value of $117,824.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,006 shares in the company, valued at $1,998,741.74. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Parker Harris sold 4,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.87, for a total value of $1,217,454.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 118,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $34,353,653.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 87,781 shares of company stock valued at $23,696,593. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.