State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Reduces Stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

by · The Markets Daily

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury cut its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL – Free Report) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 574,348 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 19,531 shares during the quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury’s holdings in Oracle were worth $95,709,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Oracle by 89.7% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 129.0% during the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:ORCL opened at $128.56 on Monday. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $112.78 and a 12 month high of $198.31. The business’s 50-day moving average is $150.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $166.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $359.58 billion, a PE ratio of 31.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Oracle’s payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,453,328 shares of company stock worth $454,439,851 in the last quarter. 42.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ORCL. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 target price on shares of Oracle and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.73.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on Oracle

Oracle Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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