Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) is Councilmark Asset Management LLC’s 9th Largest Position

Councilmark Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,691 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Oracle accounts for 3.2% of Councilmark Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Councilmark Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $4,781,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $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 buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its position in Oracle by 129.0% during the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $149.48 on Wednesday. Oracle Co. has a one year low of $112.78 and a one year high of $198.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $165.32 and a 200-day moving average of $170.01. The company has a market capitalization of $418.10 billion, a PE ratio of 36.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. 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 announced its 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). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 46.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ORCL. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com downgraded Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on Oracle and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Oracle has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,565,931.52. This represents a 23.58 % 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. Company 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.