Atala Financial Inc Acquires 1,467 Shares of Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM)

Atala Financial Inc grew its stake in Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:CRM - Free Report) by 25.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,292 shares of the CRM provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,467 shares during the period. Salesforce accounts for approximately 1.5% of Atala Financial Inc's holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Atala Financial Inc's holdings in Salesforce were worth $1,958,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CRM. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Salesforce in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Salesforce during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors own 80.43% of the company's stock.

Salesforce Price Performance

CRM traded up $1.98 during trading on Friday, hitting $272.72. 21,736,713 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,553,599. Salesforce Inc. has a twelve month low of $230.00 and a twelve month high of $369.00. The company has a market cap of $260.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.68, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $270.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $294.66.

Salesforce (NYSE:CRM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The CRM provider reported $2.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.03. Salesforce had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The business had revenue of $9.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.44 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Salesforce Inc. will post 7.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Salesforce Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.416 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 18th. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. Salesforce's payout ratio is presently 25.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Salesforce news, insider R David Schmaier sold 6,959 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $253.31, for a total transaction of $1,762,784.29. Following the sale, the insider now owns 36,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,141,957.90. The trade was a 16.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Miguel Milano sold 405 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.35, for a total transaction of $106,251.75. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,933 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,605,922.55. The trade was a 3.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 26,284 shares of company stock valued at $6,996,762. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on CRM shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $404.00 price target (up previously from $393.00) on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Salesforce from $430.00 to $400.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Erste Group Bank cut Salesforce from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $325.00 price target on shares of Salesforce in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, twenty-eight have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $349.08.

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.