Connors Investor Services Inc. Sells 1,614 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Connors Investor Services Inc. lowered its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 115,076 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 1,614 shares during the period. Oracle makes up about 1.7% of Connors Investor Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Connors Investor Services Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $16,249,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 148.8% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,616,855,000 after purchasing an additional 7,699,141 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 22.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,384,162 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,938,242,000 after purchasing an additional 3,323,334 shares in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 131.2% in the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,911,201 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $552,262,000 after purchasing an additional 2,219,450 shares in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 17.7% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 14,599,902 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,539,268,000 after purchasing an additional 2,191,342 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 97.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,242,647 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $532,920,000 after purchasing an additional 2,093,893 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

ORCL opened at $170.37 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $140.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $130.57. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $99.26 and a 12-month high of $173.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $472.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.92, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.01.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. Oracle had a return on equity of 171.38% and a net margin of 20.40%. The company had revenue of $13.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 43.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total value of $34,042,967.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,626,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,042,045.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Chairman Lawrence Joseph Ellison sold 1,125,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.69, for a total value of $161,651,250.00. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 1,145,732,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $164,630,281,802.57. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total value of $34,042,967.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,626,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,042,045.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,862,500 shares of company stock worth $266,776,624. Company insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ORCL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Oracle from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Mizuho lifted their price target on Oracle from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on Oracle from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.88.

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.