L & S Advisors Inc Reduces Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

L & S Advisors Inc lowered its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 69.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 16,176 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 37,633 shares during the period. L & S Advisors Inc’s holdings in Oracle were worth $2,696,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. PARUS FINANCE UK Ltd now owns 103,366 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $17,225,000 after purchasing an additional 7,900 shares during the last quarter. Allianz SE acquired a new position in Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $19,762,000. Tucker Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Oracle by 99.0% in the 4th quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC now owns 410 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA now owns 56,449 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $9,407,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth $62,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Oracle stock opened at $140.75 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $163.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $170.22. The stock has a market cap of $393.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com downgraded Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Oracle and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.20.

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.