Panagora Asset Management Inc. Sells 7,334 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Panagora Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 31.3% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 16,060 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 7,334 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $2,268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $1,210,181,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in Oracle by 148.8% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,616,855,000 after acquiring an additional 7,699,141 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Oracle by 382.4% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,563,366 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $481,820,000 after acquiring an additional 3,617,413 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 22.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,384,162 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,938,242,000 after purchasing an additional 3,323,334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PineStone Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Oracle by 131.2% during the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,911,201 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $552,262,000 after purchasing an additional 2,219,450 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jeffrey Berg sold 22,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.12, for a total transaction of $3,220,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 210,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,157,101.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total value of $2,068,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,010,030.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey Berg sold 22,500 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.12, for a total value of $3,220,200.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 210,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,157,101.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,862,500 shares of company stock valued at $266,776,624. 42.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $141.31 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $389.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.09, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.02. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $99.26 and a 12 month high of $146.59. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $138.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $127.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.25.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.02). Oracle had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 223.01%. The company had revenue of $14.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.57 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.35 EPS. Oracle’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 11th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $125.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Oracle from $133.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 10th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.83.

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.