Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Holdings Lifted by Shell Asset Management Co.

Shell Asset Management Co. lifted its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 205.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 22,259 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after acquiring an additional 14,968 shares during the period. Shell Asset Management Co.'s holdings in Oracle were worth $3,709,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ORCL. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in Oracle by 201.7% during the fourth quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,599 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Oracle by 24.8% during the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 164,593 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $27,428,000 after purchasing an additional 32,718 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,800,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in Oracle by 40.8% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 564,030 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $93,990,000 after purchasing an additional 163,543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $20,346,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,866 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.53, for a total value of $428,552.98. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 31,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,749,670.92. This represents a 8.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total transaction of $648,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This represents a 7.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 27,366 shares of company stock worth $4,015,723. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ORCL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Fourteen 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.42.

Oracle Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of ORCL stock opened at $160.31 on Friday. Oracle Co. has a 1 year low of $114.55 and a 1 year high of $198.31. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $142.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $162.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $448.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. The company's revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.25%. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

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.

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