CHICAGO TRUST Co NA significantly increased its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE: CRM) by 109.8% during the third quarter, according to its latest SEC filing. The fund now holds 4,314 shares of the CRM provider's stock, valued at $990,000. Other institutional investors also made notable moves, with Partners Wealth Management LLC acquiring a new position worth approximately $1,027,000, and Soltis Investment Advisors LLC growing its stake by 16.0%, now owning 7,850 shares worth $1,802,000.
In insider trading news, Director Craig Conway sold 4,500 shares of Salesforce stock on September 4th at an average price of $260.61, totaling $1,172,745. This transaction reduced his ownership by 45.29%. Conversely, Director David Blair Kirk purchased 4,176 shares on September 18th at an average cost of $239.33, increasing his position by 28.66%. The company's stock opened at $228.56 on Friday, with a market capitalization of $188.10 billion and a PE ratio of 20.84.
Salesforce recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.44, paid on October 8th to stockholders of record on September 17th. The dividend yield stands at 0.8%. The company also announced its FY 2027 guidance, projecting EPS between 16.670 and 16.710, and Q3 2027 guidance between 3.420 and 3.440 EPS. Analysts expect Salesforce to post 12.82 EPS for the current year.
On the strategic front, Salesforce signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rune Technologies, a defense-technology company, to expand its presence in military and government applications. The company also completed an 18-month realignment centered on Salesforce CRM and artificial intelligence for the architecture, engineering, and construction industries. Despite positive sentiment around these developments, Salesforce's stock declined in sympathy with other software stocks, renewing concerns about enterprise-software demand and AI monetization timelines.