Coleford Investment Management Ltd. Makes New Investment in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Coleford Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 149,194 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $24,862,000. Oracle accounts for 6.6% of Coleford Investment Management Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding.

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

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total value of $648,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. The trade was a 7.93 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,453,328 shares of company stock valued at $454,439,851. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL stock opened at $129.67 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $152.83 and its 200 day moving average is $166.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $362.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.70, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $112.78 and a 12 month high of $198.31. 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 posted its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ORCL has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Westpark Capital initiated coverage on Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 price objective for the company. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Oracle presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.73.

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.