Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Sold by Ensign Peak Advisors Inc

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc reduced its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 18.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,601,205 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 368,957 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Oracle were worth $266,825,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ORCL. Ethic Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 180,160 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $30,022,000 after acquiring an additional 20,106 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co raised its position in shares of Oracle by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 163,362 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $27,223,000 after buying an additional 5,632 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter worth about $3,394,000. FWL Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Oracle by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC now owns 54,944 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $9,156,000 after acquiring an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clark Capital Management Group Inc. grew its stake in Oracle by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 11,614 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,935,000 after acquiring an additional 663 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total value of $648,850.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This trade represents a 7.93 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 value of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. This trade represents a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,366 shares of company stock valued at $4,015,723 over the last quarter. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Oracle Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $150.38 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The stock has a market cap of $420.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.77, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $114.55 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The business’s 50 day moving average is $142.26 and its 200 day moving average is $163.20.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is 46.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ORCL shares. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $130.00 price objective (down previously from $190.00) on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $194.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.42.

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.