AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC Takes $768,000 Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 4,611 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $768,000.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ORCL. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stephens started coverage on Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 price target for the company. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.20.

Oracle Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of ORCL opened at $145.88 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $164.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $408.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its 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 net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

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.