GDS Wealth Management Sells 331 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

GDS Wealth Management lessened its stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 13.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,136 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 331 shares during the quarter. GDS Wealth Management’s holdings in Oracle were worth $225,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Oracle by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 147,273,413 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $15,599,200,000 after purchasing an additional 7,883,515 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 3.5% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 18,718,180 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,982,630,000 after purchasing an additional 635,994 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Oracle by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,909,069 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,223,775,000 after acquiring an additional 204,546 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Oracle by 1.1% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,471,884 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $897,342,000 after buying an additional 89,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Oracle by 9,299.3% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,170,999 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $865,472,000 after buying an additional 8,084,067 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Stock Performance

ORCL stock traded down $0.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $116.50. 986,233 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,068,977. The company has a market capitalization of $320.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.34. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $120.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.59. Oracle Co. has a twelve month low of $96.33 and a twelve month high of $132.77.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.04. Oracle had a net margin of 20.27% and a return on equity of 336.11%. The company had revenue of $13.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. Oracle’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Oracle’s payout ratio is presently 42.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ORCL shares. KeyCorp assumed coverage on Oracle in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $150.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $126.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 12th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, April 18th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Oracle from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.76.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 790,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total transaction of $99,966,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141,546,631.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 790,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total transaction of $99,966,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $141,546,631.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director George H. Conrades sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.00, for a total transaction of $2,320,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 17,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,068,976. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 880,000 shares of company stock valued at $110,488,150 in the last ninety days. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.