Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Sold by Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC

Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 17.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,274 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 1,976 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $1,545,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ORCL. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its stake in shares of Oracle by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 104,321 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $17,384,000 after acquiring an additional 2,408 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama increased its holdings in Oracle by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 835,464 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $139,222,000 after purchasing an additional 2,538 shares during the period. Guidance Capital Inc. raised its position in Oracle by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 6,143 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 829 shares in the last quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,401 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $2,733,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Oracle by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 747 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Oracle stock opened at $171.52 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $171.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $164.00. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $106.51 and a 12 month 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 stock has a market capitalization of $479.73 billion, a PE ratio of 41.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ORCL. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of Oracle from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, December 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $173.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. BNP Paribas upgraded Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.73.

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.