USS Investment Management Ltd Purchases 8,409 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

USS Investment Management Ltd increased its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 320,494 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,409 shares during the period. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Oracle were worth $53,425,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Waverly Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Oracle by 117.8% in the 4th quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 157,564 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $26,256,000 after purchasing an additional 85,234 shares during the period. Whelan Financial grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 33.0% during the 4th quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 1,861 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. now owns 93,793 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $15,630,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter worth $12,264,000. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 80.1% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 221,504 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $36,912,000 after purchasing an additional 98,524 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Oracle from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $205.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 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 issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.42.

Oracle Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:ORCL traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $157.27. 7,588,344 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,499,021. The company's 50 day moving average is $143.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $162.32. Oracle Co. has a twelve month low of $114.55 and a twelve month high of $198.31. 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 capitalization of $439.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last 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 fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid 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 1.27%. This is an increase from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 transaction of $2,646,700.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,785,531.60. This trade represents a 23.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 value of $428,552.98. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 31,764 shares in the company, valued at $4,749,670.92. The trade was a 8.28% 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 90 days. 42.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.