Exane Asset Management Grows Stock Position in Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL)

Exane Asset Management boosted its position in Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 47.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,423 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,275 shares during the quarter. Oracle makes up 1.4% of Exane Asset Management's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Exane Asset Management's holdings in Oracle were worth $2,480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $2,216,314,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Oracle by 15,012.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,755,096 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $664,810,000 after purchasing an additional 4,723,631 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Oracle by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 13,825,360 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $2,303,858,000 after purchasing an additional 2,350,448 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Oracle by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 157,411,949 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $26,231,127,000 after purchasing an additional 2,296,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Oracle by 268.4% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,077,947 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $512,909,000 after buying an additional 2,242,520 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Oracle stock traded down $0.23 on Thursday, reaching $235.08. The company had a trading volume of 10,497,469 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,223,456. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $183.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $165.63. The firm has a market cap of $660.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. Oracle Corporation has a 1 year low of $118.86 and a 1 year high of $241.44.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.58 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 87.34% and a net margin of 21.68%. Oracle's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Oracle Corporation will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is 46.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,866 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 31,764 shares in the company, valued at $4,749,670.92. This represents a 8.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Rona Alison Fairhead acquired 480 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $233.87 per share, with a total value of $112,257.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 22,110 shares in the company, valued at $5,170,865.70. The trade was a 2.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 450,366 shares of company stock worth $85,433,503. 42.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on ORCL. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. UBS Group set a $250.00 price objective on Oracle and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. CIBC reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $209.33.

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.