DAVENPORT & Co LLC Sells 90,427 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

DAVENPORT & Co LLC trimmed its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 836,352 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 90,427 shares during the period. Oracle accounts for approximately 0.8% of DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. DAVENPORT & Co LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $139,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ORCL. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Oracle by 89.7% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle in the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on ORCL. StockNews.com raised Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, BNP Paribas raised Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.73.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $169.91 on Friday. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $106.51 and a 52-week high of $198.31. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $171.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $163.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $475.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.06.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly 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). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. 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 company posted $1.34 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

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.