Anchor Investment Management LLC Decreases Stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Anchor Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 39,353 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 2,860 shares during the quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $6,558,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted 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 buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. lifted its stake in Oracle by 129.0% during the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Stephens began coverage on Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price objective on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Oracle currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.27.

Insider Activity

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total value of $291,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. This trade represents a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock worth $453,791,001 over the last 90 days. 42.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Oracle Trading Up 1.5 %

Oracle stock opened at $134.33 on Tuesday. Oracle Co. has a 1 year low of $112.78 and a 1 year high of $198.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $154.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $167.39. The firm has a market cap of $375.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.49%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.95%.

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.