Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama lessened its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 832,926 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 405,885 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama's holdings in Oracle were worth $141,931,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA now owns 2,656 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Triad Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the second quarter worth about $140,000. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 7.5% during the second quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 15,440 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $2,180,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 25.4% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 22,136 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,126,000 after purchasing an additional 4,480 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle in the 2nd quarter valued at about $254,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ORCL traded down $1.94 on Friday, hitting $173.38. The company had a trading volume of 8,347,350 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,401,477. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The company has a market cap of $484.94 billion, a PE ratio of 42.39, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.03. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $99.36 and a 52-week high of $198.31. The business has a 50 day moving average of $180.36 and a 200 day moving average of $155.36.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. Oracle's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Oracle from $201.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $183.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Oracle news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total value of $1,042,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,076,685. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate 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.