Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Position Lifted by TD Asset Management Inc.

TD Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 835,999 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,326 shares during the quarter. TD Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $139,311,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Oracle by 129.0% during the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total transaction of $64,050,487.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,565,931.52. The trade was a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $153.59 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $429.58 billion, a PE ratio of 37.55, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $164.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.44. Oracle Co. has a twelve month low of $112.78 and a twelve month high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 46.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ORCL. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com lowered Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen research 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.20.

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.