Primecap Management Co. CA Lowers Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Primecap Management Co. CA reduced its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 0.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,133,401 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 5,640 shares during the period. Oracle comprises about 1.1% of Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in Oracle were worth $1,384,654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Oracle in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $962,000. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc grew its position in Oracle by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 54,356 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $5,757,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. grew its position in Oracle by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 14,230 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,507,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares in the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 25.3% during the 3rd quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,828 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 571 shares during the period. Finally, Lincoln National Corp boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 41,354 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $4,380,000 after buying an additional 4,999 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Price Performance

Oracle stock traded down $1.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $122.91. 7,135,041 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,001,117. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.34, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $337.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.03. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $98.77 and a 12 month high of $132.77. The business’s 50-day moving average is $121.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.99.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.04. Oracle had a net margin of 20.27% and a return on equity of 336.11%. The company had revenue of $13.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.96 earnings per share. Oracle’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on ORCL. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. HSBC boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $144.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, William Blair raised shares of Oracle from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 12th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.76.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 790,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total value of $99,966,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141,546,631.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 790,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total transaction of $99,966,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141,546,631.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director George H. Conrades sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.00, for a total transaction of $2,320,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,068,976. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 880,000 shares of company stock worth $110,488,150 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

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.