Potomac Fund Management Inc. ADV Buys Shares of 1,740 Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Potomac Fund Management Inc. ADV purchased a new position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 1,740 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $290,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its holdings in 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 worth $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Oracle by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $411,748,000 after purchasing an additional 121,874 shares during the period. United Bank lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 4.8% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Atom Investors LP boosted its holdings in Oracle by 100.2% in the 3rd quarter. Atom Investors LP now owns 8,698 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,482,000 after buying an additional 4,353 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in Oracle by 1,257.4% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 92,601 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $15,780,000 after buying an additional 85,779 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stephens started coverage on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.65.

Insider Activity

In related 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 transaction of $64,050,487.44. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $142.05 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick 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 company has a market capitalization of $397.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.73, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $162.91 and its 200 day moving average is $170.02.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released 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 business had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. 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 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.