Meeder Asset Management Inc. Trims Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 81.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 398 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 1,716 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $102,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 84,635,254 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $25,490,446,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008,841 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 19,561,325 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,147,402,000 after purchasing an additional 457,463 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 14,905,462 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $3,922,223,000 after purchasing an additional 736,986 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 26.9% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 14,376,536 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,329,925,000 after purchasing an additional 3,044,611 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 14,116,449 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,251,592,000 after buying an additional 407,834 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In other Salesforce news, Director Oscar Munoz acquired 2,051 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $243.69 per share, with a total value of $499,808.19. Following the purchase, the director now owns 7,026 shares in the company, valued at $1,712,165.94. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Salesforce news, Director Oscar Munoz bought 2,051 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $243.69 per share, for a total transaction of $499,808.19. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 7,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,712,165.94. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Srinivas Tallapragada sold 942 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.32, for a total transaction of $228,265.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,154 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,368,357.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 62,376 shares of company stock valued at $15,878,005 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE:CRM opened at $254.57 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $253.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $268.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $246.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.29. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $193.68 and a 1-year high of $318.71.

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

Salesforce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Salesforce’s payout ratio is currently 28.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CRM has been the topic of several research reports. Loop Capital increased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Mizuho cut their price target on Salesforce from $345.00 to $300.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-seven have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $304.41.

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.