Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Position Reduced by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC decreased its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 37.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 15,314 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 9,136 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $1,615,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bordeaux Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Oracle by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Bordeaux Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,780 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the period. 9258 Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Oracle by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 90,285 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $9,519,000 after buying an additional 560 shares during the period. Carson Advisory Inc. acquired a new position in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth $208,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in Oracle by 268.6% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 93,348 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $9,841,000 after buying an additional 68,020 shares during the period. Finally, SouthState Corp boosted its stake in Oracle by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 140,037 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $14,764,000 after purchasing an additional 7,864 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Oracle Price Performance

NYSE:ORCL opened at $115.80 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $318.28 billion, a PE ratio of 30.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.03. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $94.41 and a 1-year high of $132.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $119.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.34.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the business earned $0.96 EPS. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 4.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.38%. Oracle’s payout ratio is 42.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on ORCL shares. Argus raised shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. HSBC lifted their price target on Oracle from $144.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Oracle from $126.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 12th. KeyCorp began coverage on Oracle in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $150.00 price target for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer started coverage on Oracle in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director George H. Conrades sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.13, for a total value of $2,903,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,071,294.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 790,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director George H. Conrades sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.13, for a total transaction of $2,903,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 17,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,071,294.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.