VSM Wealth Advisory LLC Purchases Shares of 595 Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 595 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $99,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,019 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 883 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Oracle by 5.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $411,748,000 after purchasing an additional 121,874 shares in the last quarter. United Bank lifted its stake in Oracle by 4.8% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 11,430 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,948,000 after buying an additional 519 shares during the period. Tranquility Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $213,000. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc grew its position in shares of Oracle by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 24,524 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $4,181,000 after buying an additional 1,062 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The shares were 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 $207,565,931.52. This trade 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 is available at the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ORCL shares. Guggenheim reissued a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays dropped their price target on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised 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. Finally, Stephens initiated coverage on Oracle in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 target price on the stock. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.20.

Oracle Stock Performance

NYSE ORCL opened at $152.40 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $426.25 billion, a PE ratio of 37.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $112.78 and a 52-week high of $198.31. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $165.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $169.89.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.95%.

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.