Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $316.01 Million Stake in Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,327,814 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 266,686 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $316,011,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Salesforce by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 25,668 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $8,582,000 after purchasing an additional 3,102 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $611,000 after buying an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC increased its position in Salesforce by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $747,000 after buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,958 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $807,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, United Bank boosted its holdings in Salesforce by 5.2% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 10,198 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $2,781,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Stock Up 0.3%

CRM stock opened at $202.04 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $186.48 billion, a PE ratio of 25.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Salesforce Inc. has a twelve month low of $174.57 and a twelve month high of $296.05. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $217.21 and its 200-day moving average is $236.79.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The CRM provider reported $3.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.05 by $0.76. The business had revenue of $11.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.18 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 15.38% and a net margin of 17.96%.Salesforce’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.78 earnings per share. Salesforce has set its FY 2027 guidance at 13.110-13.190 EPS and its Q1 2027 guidance at 3.110-3.130 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. This is an increase from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 9th. Salesforce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on CRM. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Salesforce in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $430.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Salesforce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Northland Securities boosted their price target on shares of Salesforce from $264.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-seven have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $283.14.

Trending Headlines about Salesforce

Here are the key news stories impacting Salesforce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings and market reaction — Salesforce reported an earnings beat and record revenue, and the stock has rebounded from recent lows as investors appear to be looking past worst‑case AI fears. This is the main driver of improving sentiment. Salesforce: A Week After Earnings, the Market Has Spoken
• Positive Sentiment: Large buyback and cash flow strength — Analysts highlight a meaningful free cash flow beat and Salesforce’s announcement of a massive $50B buyback, which can materially support share price and EPS over time. Salesforce: AI Disruption Fears Create Mispricing
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and bullish price targets — Multiple firms have reiterated or raised ratings (e.g., Phillip Securities maintained a Buy with a $253 target), helping lift investor confidence. Upgrades/price‑target moves are directly supportive of the rally. Phillip Securities Maintains a Buy on Salesforce (CRM)
• Positive Sentiment: Product/AI momentum and partnerships — New AI initiatives (Agentforce) and a Formula 1 fan‑agent rollout show tangible go‑to‑market AI use cases that support long‑term monetization of AI features. Salesforce Inc. (CRM) Leverages AI to Transform Fan and Customer Engagement
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/industry writeups highlight momentum and valuation — Several outlets (Zacks) list Salesforce among software names positioned to benefit from a sector recovery; these articles boost visibility but provide less immediate price impact than earnings or buybacks. The Software Recovery Already Started: 5 Stocks to Buy Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Geographic expansion — Reports noting the Philippines as a fast‑growing market signal incremental revenue opportunities but are less likely to move the stock near term. Philippines fastest-growing market for Salesforce in Southeast Asia
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing AI disruption and valuation concerns — Despite improving signals, investors remain wary that AI could compress demand or enable lower‑cost competitors; the stock still reflects a material YTD and 1‑year decline, keeping downside risk present. Is Salesforce (CRM) Pricing Reflect Its Cash Flow Outlook After Recent Share Price Weakness

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David Blair Kirk purchased 1,936 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $258.64 per share, with a total value of $500,727.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 10,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,761,499.28. This trade represents a 22.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Neelie Kroes sold 3,893 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.70, for a total transaction of $929,259.10. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,299 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,271.30. This trade represents a 34.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Company Profile

Salesforce, founded in 1999 and headquartered in San Francisco, is a global provider of cloud-based software focused on customer relationship management (CRM) and enterprise applications. The company popularized the software-as-a-service (SaaS) model for CRM and has built a broad portfolio of products designed to help organizations manage sales, service, marketing, commerce and analytics through a unified, cloud-first platform.

Core offerings include Sales Cloud for sales automation, Service Cloud for customer support, Marketing Cloud for digital marketing and engagement, and Commerce Cloud for e-commerce.