Wright Investors Service Inc. Boosts Stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,216 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,384 shares during the period. Oracle accounts for about 1.3% of Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $4,808,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Alaska Permanent Fund Corp purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total value of $2,068,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total value of $2,068,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total value of $1,042,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,076,685. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,573,181 shares of company stock valued at $225,338,245. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on ORCL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Oracle from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Argus upped their price objective on Oracle from $145.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Barclays boosted their target price on Oracle from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Oracle from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $167.42.

Oracle Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Oracle stock traded up $4.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $170.86. 6,389,504 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,572,225. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $99.26 and a 52-week high of $173.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $473.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average of $147.84 and a 200-day moving average of $135.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. Oracle had a return on equity of 171.38% and a net margin of 20.40%. The company had revenue of $13.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.13%.

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.