Sienna Gestion Increases Stock Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Sienna Gestion lifted its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 1,051.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 38,915 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 35,536 shares during the period. Sienna Gestion’s holdings in Oracle were worth $6,484,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Oracle during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 129.0% in the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,565,931.52. This represents a 23.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL stock opened at $147.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $412.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $166.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.34. Oracle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $112.78 and a fifty-two week high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released 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 the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ORCL. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Citigroup cut their target price on Oracle from $194.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.71.

Oracle Company 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.