Nicollet Investment Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Nicollet Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in Salesforce, Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,173 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after selling 70 shares during the quarter. Salesforce comprises about 1.7% of Nicollet Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Nicollet Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Salesforce were worth $5,073,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 49,007,404 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $13,432,855,000 after buying an additional 864,193 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Salesforce by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,780,318 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $5,395,132,000 after acquiring an additional 257,501 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,453,872 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $4,163,703,000 after acquiring an additional 177,321 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Salesforce during the 4th quarter worth about $3,599,867,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Salesforce by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,066,354 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $2,028,164,000 after purchasing an additional 153,500 shares during the last quarter. 80.43% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Stephens began coverage on Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $311.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $345.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $440.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Salesforce from $425.00 to $375.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, thirty-one have given a buy rating and five have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Salesforce presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $361.42.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.7 %

CRM opened at $268.05 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $257.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.35. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $308.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $311.67. Salesforce, Inc. has a 1-year low of $212.00 and a 1-year high of $369.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Salesforce Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. This is a positive change from Salesforce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Salesforce’s payout ratio is 26.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Salesforce

In other news, CAO Sundeep G. Reddy sold 436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $332.28, for a total transaction of $144,874.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 7,057 shares in the company, valued at $2,344,899.96. This trade represents a 5.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Amy E. Weaver sold 6,221 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.88, for a total value of $2,052,183.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 45,861 shares in the company, valued at $15,128,626.68. This represents a 11.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 45,660 shares of company stock worth $14,095,336 in the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Salesforce

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.