Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Bought by Impax Asset Management Group plc

Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 19.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,272,140 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 371,949 shares during the period. Oracle comprises approximately 1.3% of Impax Asset Management Group plc’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned 0.08% of Oracle worth $320,188,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Oracle by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,213,890 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $18,993,977,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,569 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Oracle by 0.4% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,466,713 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $2,319,604,000 after purchasing an additional 82,551 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 14,599,902 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,539,268,000 after acquiring an additional 2,191,342 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 148.8% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,616,855,000 after acquiring an additional 7,699,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Putnam Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 12,339,385 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,300,941,000 after acquiring an additional 697,961 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Argus increased 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. Mizuho increased their price objective on Oracle from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Oracle from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.83.

Oracle Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL traded down $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $142.30. 317,184 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,993,707. The firm has a market cap of $392.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.44, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.25, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.71. Oracle Co. has a 52-week low of $99.26 and a 52-week high of $146.59. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $138.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $128.12.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 223.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.35 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5.02 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 11th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 11th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. Oracle’s payout ratio is currently 43.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total transaction of $2,068,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Oracle news, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total transaction of $34,042,967.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,626,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,042,045.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,862,500 shares of company stock worth $266,776,624 in the last 90 days. 42.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.