Verity & Verity LLC Decreases Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Verity & Verity LLC decreased its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 9.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,988 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 1,212 shares during the quarter. Verity & Verity LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $1,676,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 129.0% during the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Trading Up 13.2%

ORCL stock opened at $199.67 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $558.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.82, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.32. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $151.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.44. Oracle Co. has a 52 week low of $118.86 and a 52 week high of $202.49.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $15.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.58 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Oracle’s payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,866 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.53, for a total transaction of $428,552.98. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 31,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,749,670.92. This represents a 8.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 17,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.24, for a total transaction of $2,646,700.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,785,531.60. This trade represents a 23.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 27,366 shares of company stock worth $4,015,723 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ORCL shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on Oracle from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen lowered Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Oracle from $180.00 to $215.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Oracle from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $192.30.

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.