Vega Investment Solutions Sells 9,996 Shares of Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Vega Investment Solutions reduced its position in shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 35.3% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 18,297 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 9,996 shares during the quarter. Salesforce makes up 1.2% of Vega Investment Solutions’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Vega Investment Solutions’ holdings in Salesforce were worth $4,989,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Salesforce by 1.0% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 88,823,481 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $24,221,275,000 after purchasing an additional 909,853 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Salesforce by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,873,900 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $5,669,224,000 after buying an additional 114,504 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Salesforce in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,826,049,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 6.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 9,258,518 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,484,616,000 after buying an additional 600,386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 26.2% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 7,755,317 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,087,545,000 after acquiring an additional 1,612,413 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, insider Parker Harris sold 134,662 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.70, for a total value of $31,605,171.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 139,767 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,803,314.90. The trade was a 49.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 122 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.00, for a total value of $31,598.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $3,085,096,889. The trade was a 0.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 182,034 shares of company stock valued at $43,297,979 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Northland Securities boosted their target price on shares of Salesforce from $264.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $275.00 to $265.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Salesforce from $316.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Macquarie upped their target price on Salesforce from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $430.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Twenty-nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $326.54.

Salesforce Stock Up 5.4%

Shares of NYSE:CRM opened at $260.78 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $243.26 and its 200-day moving average is $252.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 0.98. Salesforce Inc. has a 52 week low of $221.96 and a 52 week high of $367.15. The company has a market capitalization of $244.35 billion, a PE ratio of 34.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.25.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $10.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.27 billion. Salesforce had a net margin of 17.91% and a return on equity of 14.41%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.41 EPS. Salesforce has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.020-3.040 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 18th will be given a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is 22.16%.

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.