Bernard Wealth Management Corp. Invests $719,000 in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,317 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock, valued at approximately $719,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ORCL. Capital & Planning LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 15,727 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $2,621,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 189.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 153,580 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $25,593,000 after buying an additional 100,494 shares during the last quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 10.4% in the 4th quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,838 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,139,000 after buying an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Oracle by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 21,352 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,558,000 after buying an additional 765 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grimes & Company Inc. raised its stake in Oracle by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 12,204 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $2,034,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on ORCL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Oracle from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Stephens began coverage on Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $174.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. This trade represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.24, for a total transaction of $2,646,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,785,531.60. The trade was a 23.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,366 shares of company stock worth $4,015,723 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL traded up $5.87 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $161.84. The company had a trading volume of 6,969,407 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,499,682. 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 $114.55 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $143.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $161.60. The company has a market capitalization of $452.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.57, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) 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 analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.41 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. Oracle's payout ratio is currently 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.