Renaissance Group LLC Sells 331 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Renaissance Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,766 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 331 shares during the period. Renaissance Group LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % 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 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 shares were sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock valued at $453,791,001 over the last three months. 42.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ORCL shares. Stephens began coverage on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 target price on Oracle and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Westpark Capital started coverage on Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.65.

Oracle Trading Down 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $124.32 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $157.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $168.47. Oracle Co. has a 1 year low of $112.78 and a 1 year high of $198.31. 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 company has a market capitalization of $347.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.41 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS 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 given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change 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 dividend yield of 1.61%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.95%.

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.