Fred Alger Management LLC Decreases Stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Fred Alger Management LLC lowered its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,328 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 882 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $4,554,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Oracle by 89.7% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its position in Oracle by 129.0% during the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total transaction of $648,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This represents a 7.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,866 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.53, for a total value of $428,552.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 31,764 shares in the company, valued at $4,749,670.92. The trade was a 8.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,366 shares of company stock worth $4,015,723 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Oracle stock opened at $150.18 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $420.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27. Oracle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $114.55 and a fifty-two week high of $198.31. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $163.02.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s payout ratio is 46.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ORCL. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. Stephens started coverage on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Oracle from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Bank of America cut their target price on Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.42.

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.