Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Bought by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in Oracle Corporation by 338.4%, holding 17,815 shares valued at approximately $2.49 million.
• Insider selling occurred with EVP Maria Smith and insider Clayton M. Magouyrk selling shares worth a combined total of over $5.5 million, indicating a decrease in their ownership percentages.
• Oracle's stock opened at $256.52, with a market cap of $720.51 billion, reporting $1.70 EPS for the most recent quarter and surpassing analyst estimates.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 338.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,815 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after purchasing an additional 13,751 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.'s holdings in Oracle were worth $2,491,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ORCL. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 189.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 153,580 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $25,593,000 after buying an additional 100,494 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,418 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $903,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares during the period. Winslow Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Oracle by 47.1% in the 4th quarter. Winslow Capital Management LLC now owns 3,066,200 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $510,952,000 after purchasing an additional 981,955 shares in the last quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 8,797 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,466,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DRW Securities LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 126.5% in the 4th quarter. DRW Securities LLC now owns 10,576 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,762,000 after acquiring an additional 5,907 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, EVP Maria Smith sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.99, for a total transaction of $2,329,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 40,807 shares in the company, valued at $9,507,622.93. This trade represents a 19.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Clayton M. Magouyrk sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.10, for a total value of $3,211,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 60,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,000,580.20. This represents a 19.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 428,303 shares of company stock worth $82,480,056 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of Oracle stock opened at $256.52 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $720.51 billion, a PE ratio of 59.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 1.43. Oracle Corporation has a 12 month low of $118.86 and a 12 month high of $260.87. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $219.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $176.71.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 21.68% and a return on equity of 87.34%. The business had revenue of $15.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle Corporation will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a $0.50 dividend. 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 payout ratio is presently 46.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ORCL. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Loop Capital set a $135.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Oracle from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Oracle from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $222.75.

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.

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