Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Sells 2,105,613 Shares of Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL)

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has reduced its holdings in Oracle Corporation by 13.6%, now owning approximately 13.3 million shares valued at $1.87 billion.
• Several institutional investors, including GAMMA Investing LLC and UBS AM, significantly increased their stakes in Oracle during the first and fourth quarters.
• Oracle announced a $0.50 quarterly dividend, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.8% and a payout ratio of 46.08%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 13.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,346,063 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 2,105,613 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.48% of Oracle worth $1,865,913,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 12.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 19,620,534 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,269,566,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176,892 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 13,825,360 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $2,303,858,000 after acquiring an additional 2,350,448 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,046,273 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,340,830,000 after acquiring an additional 335,352 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 6,821,083 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,136,665,000 after purchasing an additional 585,560 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 15,012.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,755,096 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $664,810,000 after purchasing an additional 4,723,631 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Trading Up 0.3%

ORCL traded up $0.85 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $256.52. 9,919,562 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,380,186. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07. The stock's 50-day moving average is $217.36 and its 200 day moving average is $176.15. Oracle Corporation has a 12 month low of $118.86 and a 12 month high of $260.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $720.51 billion, a PE ratio of 59.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 1.43.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $15.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Oracle Corporation will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Westpark Capital upped their price target on shares of Oracle from $195.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Oracle from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, CIBC reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Monday, June 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $222.75.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 3,303 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.32, for a total value of $770,655.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 31,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,337,214.04. This trade represents a 9.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Clayton M. Magouyrk sold 15,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.10, for a total transaction of $3,211,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 60,722 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,000,580.20. This trade represents a 19.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 428,303 shares of company stock worth $82,480,056. Corporate insiders own 42.20% 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.