Mechanics Bank Trust Department Sells 2,807 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department lowered its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 76,958 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 2,807 shares during the quarter. Oracle comprises approximately 1.6% of Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Oracle were worth $10,866,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ORCL. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at $1,210,181,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Oracle by 148.8% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,616,855,000 after purchasing an additional 7,699,141 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Oracle by 382.4% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,563,366 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $481,820,000 after purchasing an additional 3,617,413 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 22.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,384,162 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,938,242,000 after purchasing an additional 3,323,334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 17.7% during the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 14,599,902 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,539,268,000 after purchasing an additional 2,191,342 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Up 2.4 %

ORCL traded up $3.10 on Friday, hitting $132.06. The company had a trading volume of 5,597,278 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,406,326. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $99.26 and a 52-week high of $146.59. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $137.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $125.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.25, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $363.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.02.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $14.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.57 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 223.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.35 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 11th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 11th. Oracle’s payout ratio is currently 43.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Oracle from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $144.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Oracle from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total transaction of $2,068,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at $8,010,030.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total value of $34,042,967.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 2,626,764 shares in the company, valued at $379,042,045.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total transaction of $2,068,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,862,500 shares of company stock worth $266,776,624. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Oracle Company Profile

Oracle Corporation offers products and services that address enterprise information technology environments worldwide. Its Oracle cloud software as a service offering include various cloud software applications, including Oracle Fusion cloud enterprise resource planning (ERP), Oracle Fusion cloud enterprise performance management, Oracle Fusion cloud supply chain and manufacturing management, Oracle Fusion cloud human capital management, Oracle Cerner healthcare, Oracle Advertising, and NetSuite applications suite, as well as Oracle Fusion Sales, Service, and Marketing.