Hendershot Investments Inc. Sells 25,934 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Hendershot Investments Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 25.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 74,167 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 25,934 shares during the period. Oracle comprises approximately 1.7% of Hendershot Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Hendershot Investments Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $12,359,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Forbes J M & Co. LLP grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Forbes J M & Co. LLP now owns 3,102 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $517,000 after purchasing an additional 944 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in Oracle by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 163,402 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $27,229,000 after buying an additional 13,275 shares during the period. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 64,020 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $10,668,000 after acquiring an additional 2,305 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 1,493 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Mezzasalma Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Oracle by 23.4% during the fourth quarter. Mezzasalma Advisors LLC now owns 3,614 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $602,000 after acquiring an additional 686 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE ORCL opened at $174.53 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $170.42 and a 200 day moving average of $164.35. The company has a market capitalization of $488.15 billion, a PE ratio of 42.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Oracle Co. has a 1 year low of $106.51 and a 1 year high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Oracle in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on Oracle from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.