AQR Capital Management LLC Cuts Stake in Oracle Corporation $ORCL

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC has reduced its holdings in Oracle Corporation by 51.3%, selling 526,790 shares and owning 500,496 shares valued at approximately $68.6 million at the end of the quarter.
• Multiple analysts have increased their price targets for Oracle shares, with UBS Group raising it from $250 to $280 and Scotiabank initiating coverage with a target of $300, signaling strong market interest in the stock.
• Oracle's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $1.70, exceeding estimates, and the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50, reflecting a 0.9% yield.

AQR Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 51.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 500,496 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 526,790 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC's holdings in Oracle were worth $68,633,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle in the first quarter valued at $27,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Oracle in the first quarter worth $28,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Oracle by 284.9% in the first quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 204 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of ORCL traded up $9.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $232.87. 15,362,371 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,036,564. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The stock's 50-day moving average is $239.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.65. Oracle Corporation has a 12 month low of $118.86 and a 12 month high of $260.87. The stock has a market cap of $654.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.66, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.46.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.06. Oracle had a return on equity of 87.34% and a net margin of 21.68%.The firm had revenue of $15.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.58 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. Oracle's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Oracle Corporation will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. Oracle's payout ratio is currently 46.08%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, insider Michael D. Sicilia sold 15,880 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.48, for a total transaction of $4,041,142.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 99,212 shares in the company, valued at $25,247,469.76. This trade represents a 13.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Clayton M. Magouyrk sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.10, for a total transaction of $3,211,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 60,722 shares in the company, valued at $13,000,580.20. This represents a 19.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 444,183 shares of company stock valued at $86,521,198. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Westpark Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $195.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Oracle from $215.00 to $270.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Oracle in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $300.00 price objective on the stock. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $227.04.

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.