Guggenheim Capital LLC Sells 31,154 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Guggenheim Capital LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 47.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,944 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 31,154 shares during the quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC's holdings in Oracle were worth $5,656,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. Portolan Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 97.9% during the fourth quarter. Portolan Capital Management LLC now owns 77,215 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $12,867,000 after acquiring an additional 38,193 shares in the last quarter. Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $10,028,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new stake in Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $6,910,000. Defined Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at about $265,000. Finally, LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 69.8% in the 4th quarter. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,993 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 2,453,328 shares of company stock valued at $454,439,851. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on ORCL shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $176.73.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL traded up $3.36 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $126.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,588,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,310,159. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $149.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $165.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $352.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. Oracle Co. has a one year low of $112.78 and a one year 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 quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. Oracle's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. This is a boost from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Oracle 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.