Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. Acquires Shares of 986,727 Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Naya Capital Management UK Ltd. acquired a new stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 986,727 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock, valued at approximately $164,428,000. Oracle accounts for approximately 17.4% of Naya Capital Management UK Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Requisite Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Requisite Capital Management LLC now owns 2,240 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Oracle by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 1,423 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp raised its holdings in Oracle by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 5,447 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $908,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Warther Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,621 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $603,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Howard Bailey Securities LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Howard Bailey Securities LLC now owns 2,274 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ORCL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays decreased their price objective on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $130.00 price objective (down previously from $190.00) on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Oracle from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. StockNews.com downgraded Oracle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price target on Oracle and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,866 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.53, for a total transaction of $428,552.98. Following the sale, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 17,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at $8,785,531.60. This trade represents a 23.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 27,366 shares of company stock valued at $4,015,723. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Oracle Stock Up 4.5%

ORCL stock opened at $157.18 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $439.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.43, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27. The business's 50-day moving average price is $142.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $162.76.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted 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 analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost 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%. Oracle's payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

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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