Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Sold by Fermata Advisors LLC

Fermata Advisors LLC cut its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 6.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 5,558 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 376 shares during the period. Fermata Advisors LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $777,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Oracle by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 1,423 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Oracle by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,621 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $603,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Howard Bailey Securities LLC raised its position in Oracle by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Howard Bailey Securities LLC now owns 2,274 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $379,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Oracle by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,061 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $177,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the period. Finally, Cape ANN Savings Bank raised its position in Oracle by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Cape ANN Savings Bank now owns 5,820 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $970,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total transaction of $648,850.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This trade represents a 7.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed 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 transaction of $291,620.00. Following the sale, the director now 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 worth $4,015,723 over the last ninety days. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their target price on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stephens assumed coverage on Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Oracle from $210.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.42.

Oracle Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Oracle stock opened at $168.17 on Thursday. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $118.86 and a 52-week high of $198.31. 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 company’s 50-day simple moving average is $145.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.87. The firm has a market cap of $470.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.32.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) 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). The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.19%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

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.