Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) is Palisade Asset Management LLC's 5th Largest Position

Palisade Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 185,738 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 1,735 shares during the quarter. Oracle comprises approximately 2.7% of Palisade Asset Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Palisade Asset Management LLC's holdings in Oracle were worth $25,968,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 1,423 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Cape ANN Savings Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Cape ANN Savings Bank now owns 5,820 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $970,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Greenwood Gearhart Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Greenwood Gearhart Inc. now owns 5,731 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $955,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. WorthPointe LLC lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. WorthPointe LLC now owns 1,734 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CORDA Investment Management LLC. lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. CORDA Investment Management LLC. now owns 7,966 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,328,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on Oracle from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. CIBC restated a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $196.74.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was 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 $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.24, for a total value of $2,646,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,785,531.60. This trade represents a 23.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 442,366 shares of company stock worth $83,395,223. 42.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Oracle Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $207.08 on Tuesday. Oracle Corporation has a 52-week low of $118.86 and a 52-week high of $216.60. The stock has a market cap of $581.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.71, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 1.32. 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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $161.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $161.26.

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

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.08%.

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.

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