Argent Trust Co Buys 3,588 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Argent Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,258 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,588 shares during the quarter. Oracle makes up 0.7% of Argent Trust Co’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Oracle were worth $18,040,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ORCL. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its holdings in Oracle by 129.0% during the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

ORCL stock traded down $4.36 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $134.83. The stock had a trading volume of 587,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,193,316. 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 $377.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $156.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $168.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

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

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ORCL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Barclays decreased their target price on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stephens initiated coverage on Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 price target for the company. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $205.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.65.

Insider Activity

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

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.