Alliancebernstein L.P. Boosts Stock Holdings in Salesforce Inc. $CRM

Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM) by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,990,299 shares of the CRM provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 145,862 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.31% of Salesforce worth $815,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Painted Porch Advisors LLC increased its stake in Salesforce by 260.0% in the 2nd quarter. Painted Porch Advisors LLC now owns 90 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Salesforce by 314.8% in the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 112 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in Salesforce by 383.3% in the second quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 116 shares of the CRM provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in Salesforce during the second quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Salesforce by 208.6% during the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 126 shares of the CRM provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.43% of the company’s stock.

Salesforce Trading Down 0.8%

CRM opened at $262.19 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $245.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $252.33. The company has a market capitalization of $245.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.01, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.25. Salesforce Inc. has a 52 week low of $221.96 and a 52 week high of $367.09.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The CRM provider reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.86 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $10.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.27 billion. Salesforce had a return on equity of 14.41% and a net margin of 17.91%.The business’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.41 EPS. Salesforce has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 3.020-3.040 EPS. Analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Salesforce Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CRM shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Salesforce from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Northland Securities upped their price objective on Salesforce from $264.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $300.00 target price on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Citigroup downgraded Salesforce from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Salesforce from $400.00 to $380.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Twenty-eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Salesforce has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $326.46.

Insider Transactions at Salesforce

In related news, Director G Mason Morfit bought 96,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $260.58 per share, for a total transaction of $25,015,680.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 2,994,509 shares in the company, valued at approximately $780,309,155.22. This represents a 3.31% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Marc Benioff sold 122 shares of Salesforce stock in a transaction on Monday, November 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.00, for a total value of $31,598.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 11,911,571 shares in the company, valued at $3,085,096,889. This represents a 0.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 177,534 shares of company stock valued at $42,194,197. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

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.