Geode Capital Management LLC Has $5.40 Billion Stock Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 1.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after buying an additional 257,501 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.07% of Salesforce worth $5,395,132,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CRM. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Salesforce during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 816.7% during the second 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 in the last quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 300.0% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 120 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC increased 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 buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Salesforce Stock Performance

Salesforce stock opened at $351.49 on Tuesday. Salesforce, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $212.00 and a fifty-two week 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. The stock has a market cap of $336.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $311.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $273.32.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 26.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Salesforce from $385.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush raised their target price on Salesforce from $325.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $290.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $372.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Miguel Milano sold 719 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.81, for a total transaction of $246,480.39. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,597,151.79. The trade was a 13.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sabastian Niles sold 2,484 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.81, for a total transaction of $608,108.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $202,702.68. The trade was a 75.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 140,982 shares of company stock valued at $41,591,457. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.