Woodline Partners LP Buys New Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 73,593 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock, valued at approximately $12,264,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Oracle by 129.0% in the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 31,764 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,749,670.92. This trade 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 this link. Also, 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 value of $2,646,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company's stock, 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 valued at $4,015,723 over the last ninety days. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $157.28 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The company has a market capitalization of $439.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.46, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $143.49 and a 200 day moving average of $162.32. Oracle Co. has a 12 month low of $114.55 and a 12 month high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.41 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ORCL has been the topic of several recent research reports. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. DA Davidson cut their price target on Oracle from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. StockNews.com lowered Oracle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.42.

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.

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