Benjamin Edwards Inc. Grows Stock Position in Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL)

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. has increased its holdings in Oracle Corporation by 2.3%, now owning 94,447 shares valued at approximately $13.2 million.
• Oracle's recent earnings report showed $1.70 earnings per share, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $15.90 billion, marking an 11.3% year-over-year increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 0.8% and a payout ratio of 46.08%.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its position in shares of Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 2.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 94,447 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after buying an additional 2,128 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in Oracle were worth $13,205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ORCL. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 284.9% during the 1st quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 204 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Oracle stock traded up $0.65 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $250.04. 8,301,832 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,261,765. The firm has a market capitalization of $702.32 billion, a PE ratio of 57.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 1.43. Oracle Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $118.86 and a fifty-two week high of $260.87. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $222.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.58 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 87.34% and a net margin of 21.68%. Oracle's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Oracle Corporation will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Oracle news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 3,303 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.32, for a total value of $770,655.96. Following the sale, the director directly owned 31,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,337,214.04. This trade represents a 9.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael D. Sicilia sold 15,880 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.48, for a total value of $4,041,142.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 99,212 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,247,469.76. The trade was a 13.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 444,183 shares of company stock valued at $86,521,198 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup upgraded Oracle from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Oracle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $180.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Oracle from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $222.75.

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.