Saratoga Research & Investment Management Cuts Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Saratoga Research & Investment Management trimmed its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 16.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 668,184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 131,995 shares during the quarter. Oracle accounts for 5.6% of Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Saratoga Research & Investment Management’s holdings in Oracle were worth $111,346,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 282,892 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $47,141,000 after purchasing an additional 10,015 shares in the last quarter. United Bank lifted its stake in Oracle by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. United Bank now owns 13,235 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $2,205,000 after acquiring an additional 1,805 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Oracle by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,946 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $13,884,000. Finally, Stage Harbor Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Stage Harbor Financial LLC now owns 1,433 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Oracle Stock Down 3.5 %

Shares of ORCL opened at $140.75 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $112.78 and a 12 month high of $198.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $163.94 and its 200-day moving average is $170.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $393.67 billion, a PE ratio of 34.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. Oracle’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.41 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Oracle’s payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on ORCL. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com lowered Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.20.

About Oracle

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.