Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Purchased by Ascent Group LLC

Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 2.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,315 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 291 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $2,439,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the second quarter valued at $27,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the second quarter valued at $35,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the second quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the third quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

NYSE:ORCL opened at $181.41 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $502.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.76, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s 50-day moving average is $177.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $152.01. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $99.26 and a 1-year high of $196.04.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.23 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. Oracle’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. Analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total value of $1,042,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 42,889 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,076,685. This represents a 12.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Oracle from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Oracle from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.52.

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.