Canopy Partners LLC Purchases 1,508 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Canopy Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 45.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,843 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,508 shares during the period. Canopy Partners LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $807,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 89.7% during the fourth 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. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its holdings 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 worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $128.17 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $160.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.38. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $112.78 and a 52-week high of $198.31. The company has a market cap of $358.48 billion, a PE ratio of 31.34, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. 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 (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate 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 is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ORCL shares. UBS Group restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. 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, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.65.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at $5,049,400.30. This trade represents a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock worth $453,791,001. 42.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Oracle

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.