Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Sold by Zhang Financial LLC

Zhang Financial LLC decreased its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 30.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,922 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 2,970 shares during the quarter. Zhang Financial LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $869,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ORCL. Sandy Spring Bank grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 78,049 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $8,229,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 5,986 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $631,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Seven Mile Advisory raised its stake in Oracle by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Seven Mile Advisory now owns 5,236 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $552,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the period. Cooper Financial Group raised its stake in Oracle by 43.4% during the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 5,038 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $531,000 after purchasing an additional 1,525 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 208.2% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 885,056 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $93,311,000 after acquiring an additional 597,846 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director George H. Conrades sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.13, for a total value of $2,903,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,071,294.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Oracle news, Director George H. Conrades sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.00, for a total value of $2,320,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,068,976. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director George H. Conrades sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.13, for a total transaction of $2,903,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,836 shares in the company, valued at $2,071,294.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 880,000 shares of company stock worth $110,488,150 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on ORCL. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $126.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, HSBC raised their price target on shares of Oracle from $144.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $130.76.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of Oracle stock traded down $0.02 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $124.61. 5,702,393 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,028,616. The stock has a market capitalization of $342.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $121.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.83. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $97.29 and a 1-year high of $132.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.34.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $13.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.29 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 20.27% and a return on equity of 336.11%. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.22%.

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.