Parnassus Investments LLC acquired Salesforce, Inc. in the 4th quarter. (NYSE:CRM - Get Rating ) acquired a new stake in shares, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 6,018,220 shares of the CRM provider’s stock, valued at approximately $797,956,000. Salesforce accounts for about 2.0% of Parnassus Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Parnassus Investments LLC owned 0.60% of Salesforce at the end of the most recent reporting period.
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A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 1,547 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Wealth Architects LLC lifted its position in shares of Salesforce by 4.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Architects LLC now owns 1,537 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 5.8% in the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 1,205 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $173,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Saturna Capital CORP boosted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.6% in the third quarter. Saturna Capital CORP now owns 4,502 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $648,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Capital Advisory Group LLC. grew its stake in Salesforce by 3.7% in the third quarter. First Capital Advisory Group LLC. now owns 1,957 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.83% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street analysts weigh in
Several research analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Salesforce from $236.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Salesforce from $185.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on Salesforce from $180.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 2nd. Finally, Tryst Financial boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $210.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.24, according to data from MarketBeat.
Insiders place their bets
In related news, insider Parker Harris sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $198.15 for a total value of $247,687.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,755 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,766,453.25. The transaction was disclosed in a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, available at this hyperlink. In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 1,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $198.15 for a total value of $247,687.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 99,755 shares in the company, valued at $19,766,453.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Sandeep G. Reddy sold 186 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.59, for a total transaction of $28,939.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 1,273 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $198,066.07. Disclosures for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 51,059 shares of company stock valued at $9,168,193. Corporate insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.
Salesforce value display
Shares of Salesforce stock traded down $1.04 during trading on Monday, hitting $191.51. The company traded 696,486 shares compared to its average volume of 8,797,856. Salesforce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $126.34 and a twelve month high of $201.12. The company has a market cap of $191.51 billion, a PE ratio of 916.95, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 1.24. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $178.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $157.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02.
Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Rating ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 1st. The CRM provider reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $8.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.99 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 0.66% and a return on equity of 4.48%. The company’s revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. The firm earned $0.24 EPS in the same quarter last year. analysts predict that Salesforce, Inc. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.
Salesforce declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, March 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the CRM provider to reacquire up to 10.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that a company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.
Salesforce Company Profile
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Salesforce, Inc is engaged in the design and development of cloud-based enterprise software for customer relationship management. Its solutions include sales force automation, customer service and support, marketing automation, digital commerce, community management, collaboration, industry-specific solutions, and the Salesforce platform.
Further reading
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