Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,458 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 302 shares during the period. Oracle accounts for about 1.7% of Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $3,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Oracle by 89.7% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in Oracle in the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ORCL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho lifted their target price on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Oracle in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.73.

Oracle Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $177.18 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $170.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $164.97. The company has a market cap of $495.57 billion, a PE ratio of 43.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.05. Oracle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $106.51 and a fifty-two week high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.34 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. Oracle’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,565,931.52. This trade represents a 23.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company 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.