Schroder Investment Management Group Has $404.05 Million Stock Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 36.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,424,680 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 648,441 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group’s holdings in Oracle were worth $404,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

Oracle Stock Down 3.5 %

Shares of ORCL opened at $140.75 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $163.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $170.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $393.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41, a PEG 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 EPS. On average, 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 paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on ORCL. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Oracle currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.20.

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.