Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Position Reduced by Perpetual Ltd

Perpetual Ltd reduced its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 17.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 875,825 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 182,776 shares during the period. Oracle comprises approximately 1.7% of Perpetual Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Perpetual Ltd’s holdings in Oracle were worth $145,947,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ORCL. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Oracle by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $411,748,000 after acquiring an additional 121,874 shares in the last quarter. RMR Wealth Builders increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 383.4% in the 4th quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 7,155 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,192,000 after purchasing an additional 5,675 shares during the period. Chase Investment Counsel Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle in the third quarter worth approximately $4,160,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 79.6% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 286,460 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $48,813,000 after purchasing an additional 126,985 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its position in Oracle by 84.5% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 863,883 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $147,206,000 after purchasing an additional 395,613 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Oracle in a report on Friday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Oracle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $182.73.

Oracle Trading Up 0.9 %

ORCL opened at $161.05 on Tuesday. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $106.51 and a 1-year high of $198.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $450.44 billion, a PE ratio of 39.38, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $175.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $161.58.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.12 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.34 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.12%.

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.