Generali Investments Management Co LLC Makes New $3.86 Million Investment in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Generali Investments Management Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 23,152 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,858,000. Oracle comprises about 1.0% of Generali Investments Management Co LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Oracle by 12.4% during 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 during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 121,874 shares during the last quarter. United Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 11,430 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,948,000 after buying an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. GLOBALT Investments LLC GA purchased a new position in shares of Oracle in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,990,000. Finally, Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Oracle in the 3rd quarter worth about $995,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ORCL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com cut Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Twelve research 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,565,931.52. This represents a 23.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Oracle Stock Down 2.9 %

ORCL stock opened at $149.48 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. The company’s 50 day moving average is $165.32 and its 200 day moving average is $170.01. The stock has a market cap of $418.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $112.78 and a 1-year high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.41 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. This is a boost 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 is 46.95%.

Oracle Company 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.