Stephens Inc. AR Acquires 24,174 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Stephens Inc. AR increased its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 53.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 69,686 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after buying an additional 24,174 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Oracle were worth $11,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 358,379 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $45,016,000 after acquiring an additional 26,478 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 6.0% during the first quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 40,739 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $5,117,000 after purchasing an additional 2,317 shares in the last quarter. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 21.7% during the first quarter. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. now owns 342,531 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $43,025,000 after purchasing an additional 61,000 shares in the last quarter. Tobam increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 95.2% in the first quarter. Tobam now owns 52,431 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $6,586,000 after buying an additional 25,570 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the first quarter valued at approximately $893,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of Oracle stock opened at $170.02 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $163.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $141.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $471.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.82, a PEG ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Oracle Co. has a one year low of $99.26 and a one year high of $178.61.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued 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 was Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,076,685. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ORCL shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Oracle from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. StockNews.com downgraded Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Oracle from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $168.52.

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.