Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Purchases 3,153 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 50.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,355 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,153 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $1,308,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in Oracle by 129.0% in the 4th 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. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,866 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.53, for a total transaction of $428,552.98. Following the transaction, the director now owns 31,764 shares in the company, valued at $4,749,670.92. This trade represents a 8.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.24, for a total value of $2,646,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,785,531.60. This trade represents a 23.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 27,366 shares of company stock valued at $4,015,723 in the last three months. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Oracle Stock Up 13.2%

Oracle stock opened at $199.67 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $558.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. Oracle Co. has a twelve month low of $118.86 and a twelve month high of $202.49. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $151.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $160.44.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.58 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business’s revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.63 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on ORCL. Morgan Stanley restated a “positive” rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Monday. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $180.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $192.30.

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.