Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Sells 560,500 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec cut its stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 43.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 721,013 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 560,500 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec’s holdings in Oracle were worth $120,150,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of 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. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its position in Oracle by 129.0% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of Oracle stock opened at $140.77 on Thursday. Oracle Co. has a 52 week low of $113.65 and a 52 week high of $198.31. The company has a market capitalization of $393.73 billion, a PE ratio of 34.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $144.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share 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 analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on ORCL. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Westpark Capital began coverage on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Oracle and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total value of $648,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This represents a 7.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total value of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.