Forge First Asset Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Forge First Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 93.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,600 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,100 shares during the quarter. Forge First Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $2,100,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 5.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $411,748,000 after buying an additional 121,874 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 201.7% in 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 during the last quarter. RMR Wealth Builders increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 383.4% in the fourth quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 7,155 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,192,000 after purchasing an additional 5,675 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 24.8% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,800,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $144.29 on Wednesday. Oracle Co. has a twelve month low of $112.78 and a twelve month high of $198.31. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $166.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $403.58 billion, a PE ratio of 35.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. 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) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. Oracle’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on ORCL. Barclays cut their price target on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. BNP Paribas upgraded Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price target on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.92.

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.