Argent Trust Co Acquires 7,025 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Argent Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 7.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 104,852 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,025 shares during the quarter. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Oracle were worth $14,805,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Down 1.7 %

NYSE:ORCL opened at $167.47 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $140.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $130.95. The company has a market capitalization of $464.05 billion, a PE ratio of 45.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.01. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $99.26 and a 1-year high of $173.99.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. The business had revenue of $13.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 43.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total transaction of $1,042,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 42,889 shares in the company, valued at $7,076,685. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares in the company, valued at $7,076,685. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,868,820 shares of company stock valued at $267,819,424. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on ORCL shares. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Oracle from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Melius raised Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Oracle from $160.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Oracle from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $163.88.

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.