Thompson Investment Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Thompson Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 18.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 47,531 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 11,092 shares during the period. Oracle comprises about 1.1% of Thompson Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Thompson Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $7,921,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Oracle by 89.7% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the third quarter worth about $44,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management acquired a new position in Oracle in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $174.53 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $488.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.67, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $170.42 and a 200-day moving average of $164.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. Oracle Co. has a 52 week low of $106.51 and a 52 week high of $198.31.

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

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ORCL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald initiated coverage on Oracle in a report on Friday, January 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Mizuho upped their price target on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com upgraded Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 1st. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.73.

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.