United Advisor Group LLC Has $296,000 Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

United Advisor Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 50.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,775 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 1,803 shares during the quarter. United Advisor Group LLC's holdings in Oracle were worth $296,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,216,314,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $930,095,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew 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 valued at $2,303,858,000 after acquiring an additional 2,350,448 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 157,411,949 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $26,231,127,000 after buying an additional 2,296,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 268.4% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,077,947 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $512,909,000 after buying an additional 2,242,520 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL traded up $2.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $163.97. 8,077,633 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,504,400. Oracle Co. has a 52 week low of $114.55 and a 52 week high of $198.31. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $143.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $161.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $458.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.09, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). 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 the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. Oracle's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. This is a positive change from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Oracle's payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total transaction of $648,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This represents a 7.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total value of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 27,366 shares of company stock worth $4,015,723. 42.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ORCL shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Stephens started coverage on Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 target price for the company. Mizuho reduced their target price on Oracle from $210.00 to $180.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their target price on Oracle from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.42.

About Oracle

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.