Gradient Investments LLC Sells 16,204 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Gradient Investments LLC cut its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 17.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 74,230 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 16,204 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $12,370,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Oracle by 89.7% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the third quarter worth about $44,000. Avondale Wealth Management bought a new position in Oracle during the third quarter worth about $51,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in Oracle during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Oracle by 21.9% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 312 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oracle Stock Down 1.5 %

Oracle stock opened at $183.59 on Friday. Oracle Co. has a twelve month low of $106.51 and a twelve month high of $198.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The company has a 50 day moving average of $174.41 and a 200-day moving average of $162.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $513.50 billion, a PE ratio of 44.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 1.06.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.34 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $205.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Oracle from $201.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on shares of Oracle in a report on Friday, January 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price target for the company. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total transaction of $64,050,487.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,565,931.52. The trade was a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

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.