Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Raises Stock Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,156,343 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 468,180 shares during the period. Oracle accounts for about 0.8% of Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned approximately 0.22% of Oracle worth $1,025,893,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its stake 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 during the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its position in Oracle by 129.0% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at $47,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ORCL shares. Barclays lowered their target price 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. UBS Group reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Stephens began coverage on Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 price objective on the stock. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.20.

Oracle Stock Down 3.5 %

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $140.75 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $163.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.22. 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 Co. has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The company has a market cap of $393.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted 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 net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.41 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. 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.