NBC Securities Inc. Buys 37,259 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

NBC Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 103,497.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,295 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after buying an additional 37,259 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc.'s holdings in Oracle were worth $5,214,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.5% in the 4th 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 period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 38,002,902 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $6,332,803,000 after acquiring an additional 156,269 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Oracle by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,814,302 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $5,954,961,000 after buying an additional 619,619 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Oracle by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,202,421 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,366,531,000 after buying an additional 1,722,037 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Oracle by 12.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 19,620,534 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,269,566,000 after buying an additional 2,176,892 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Price Performance

NYSE ORCL traded up $3.09 on Thursday, reaching $171.19. 2,979,735 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,488,724. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $145.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The company has a market cap of $478.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.32. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $118.86 and a 12 month high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. Oracle's revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. This is a positive change from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ORCL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on Oracle and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays lowered their target price on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their target price on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Oracle presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.42.

Insider Activity

In other Oracle news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,866 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.53, for a total transaction of $428,552.98. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,749,670.92. This represents a 8.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.24, for a total transaction of $2,646,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at $8,785,531.60. The trade was a 23.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 27,366 shares of company stock worth $4,015,723 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Oracle 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.