OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Makes New Investment in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

OCONNOR A Distinct Business Unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 20,729 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,454,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Oracle by 1.5% in 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 in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 38,002,902 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $6,332,803,000 after buying an additional 156,269 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,814,302 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $5,954,961,000 after buying an additional 619,619 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Oracle by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,202,421 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,366,531,000 after purchasing an additional 1,722,037 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Oracle by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 19,620,534 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,269,566,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176,892 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $157.18 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $439.62 billion, a PE ratio of 38.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. Oracle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $114.55 and a fifty-two week high of $198.31. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $142.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $162.76.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on ORCL. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $194.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 price objective for the company. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Westpark Capital initiated coverage on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued 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.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.24, for a total value of $2,646,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,785,531.60. This represents a 23.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. This trade represents a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 27,366 shares of company stock valued at $4,015,723. Insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

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.

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