Geneva Partners LLC Acquires 15,853 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Geneva Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 111.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 30,060 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,853 shares during the quarter. Oracle comprises approximately 2.0% of Geneva Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Geneva Partners LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $5,009,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the third quarter worth $44,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Oracle during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL stock opened at $171.52 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $479.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.05. Oracle Co. has a one year low of $106.51 and a one year high of $198.31. The company’s 50-day moving average is $170.83 and its 200 day moving average is $164.05.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total transaction of $64,050,487.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,565,931.52. The trade was a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ORCL shares. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Oracle from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $130.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.73.

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.