Weitz Investment Management Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL)

Key Points

• Weitz Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in Oracle Corporation by 18.1%, selling 37,500 shares and retaining 170,075 shares valued at approximately $23.78 million.
• Oracle reported earnings of $1.70 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' estimates, with revenue growth of 11.3% year-over-year.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, equating to an annualized dividend of $2.00 and a yield of 0.8%.

Weitz Investment Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 18.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 170,075 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 37,500 shares during the period. Weitz Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Oracle were worth $23,778,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Oracle by 284.9% during the first quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 204 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $244.44 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $213.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $174.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $686.59 billion, a PE ratio of 56.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. Oracle Corporation has a 12 month low of $118.86 and a 12 month high of $260.87.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 firm had revenue of $15.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. The company's revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Oracle Corporation will post 5 earnings per share for the current 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 $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Rona Alison Fairhead purchased 480 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $233.87 per share, with a total value of $112,257.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 22,110 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,170,865.70. The trade was a 2.22% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 3,303 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.32, for a total transaction of $770,655.96. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 31,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,337,214.04. The trade was a 9.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 428,303 shares of company stock valued at $82,480,056. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ORCL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised shares of Oracle from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, June 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Oracle from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $195.00 price objective (up from $145.00) on shares of Oracle in a report on Friday, June 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $218.29.

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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