First Western Trust Bank Trims Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

First Western Trust Bank lessened its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 81,133 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 3,645 shares during the quarter. Oracle accounts for approximately 0.6% of First Western Trust Bank's holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. First Western Trust Bank's holdings in Oracle were worth $13,520,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Second Line Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Oracle by 1.5% in the third quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 3,816 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $650,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Requisite Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Oracle by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Requisite Capital Management LLC now owns 2,240 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $373,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp boosted its position in shares of Oracle by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 5,447 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $908,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Warther Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,621 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $603,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company's stock.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America cut their price target on Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price target on shares of Oracle and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Oracle from $194.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $178.65.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL stock traded down $9.06 during trading on Friday, hitting $128.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 14,968,758 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,111,905. The business has a fifty day moving average of $160.05 and a 200-day moving average of $169.34. The company has a market cap of $358.48 billion, a PE ratio of 31.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. Oracle Co. has a 52 week low of $112.78 and a 52 week high of $198.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. This is a positive change from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.95%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 34,630 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,049,400.30. This represents a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock worth $453,791,001. 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.