Fairfield Bush & CO. Increases Stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Fairfield Bush & CO. raised its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 46,042 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,991 shares during the period. Oracle comprises about 4.5% of Fairfield Bush & CO.’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Fairfield Bush & CO.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $7,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ORCL. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Oracle by 129.0% during 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 during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total value of $648,850.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This represents a 7.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,565,931.52. This trade represents a 23.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,453,328 shares of company stock worth $454,439,851 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL stock opened at $129.67 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $152.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $166.90. The company has a market capitalization of $362.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. 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 Co. has a 1-year low of $112.78 and a 1-year high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ORCL has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com downgraded Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $176.73.

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.