Quadrature Capital Ltd Takes $1.58 Million Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 12,616 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,584,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ORCL. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Nordwand Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Alaska Permanent Fund Corp bought a new stake in Oracle during the first quarter valued at $36,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of ORCL stock traded up $1.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $139.01. 5,139,377 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,701,505. Oracle Co. has a 1 year low of $99.26 and a 1 year high of $146.59. The company’s 50 day moving average is $135.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $123.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.25. The firm has a market cap of $383.09 billion, a PE ratio of 37.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.02.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.02). Oracle had a return on equity of 223.01% and a net margin of 19.76%. The firm had revenue of $14.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5.02 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 11th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael J. Boskin sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.74, for a total transaction of $5,298,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 87,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,299,071.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Michael J. Boskin sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.74, for a total transaction of $5,298,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 87,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,299,071.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total value of $2,068,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,952,500 shares of company stock worth $277,298,174 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Argus lifted their price target on Oracle from $145.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Oracle from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Oracle from $133.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on Oracle from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.83.

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.