Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Sold by Highland Capital Management LLC

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 5.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 49,951 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 2,610 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $5,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Columbia Trust Co 01012016 acquired a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $236,000. PFG Investments LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 12,152 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,281,000 after purchasing an additional 1,670 shares during the period. Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,254 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,503,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Trust Co of the South acquired a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $349,000. Finally, Schechter Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 19.2% in the fourth quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,847 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $2,092,000 after purchasing an additional 3,201 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

NYSE:ORCL opened at $125.28 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $344.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.06, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.37. Oracle Co. has a twelve month low of $89.48 and a twelve month high of $132.77.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.04. The business 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%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.96 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.28%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 790,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total value of $99,966,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $141,546,631.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $107.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $135.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. Erste Group Bank reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Argus upgraded shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.76.

Oracle 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.