Chase Investment Counsel Corp Buys Shares of 24,418 Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Chase Investment Counsel Corp bought a new stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 24,418 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,160,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ORCL. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Oracle by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $411,748,000 after buying an additional 121,874 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. grew its position in Oracle by 15.3% during the second quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 24,800 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,502,000 after acquiring an additional 3,300 shares during the period. Buckley Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Oracle by 63.8% during the third quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,370 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,256,000 after acquiring an additional 2,870 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 3,709,906 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $632,168,000 after purchasing an additional 70,833 shares during the period. Finally, Atria Investments Inc lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 252,823 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $43,081,000 after purchasing an additional 38,079 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Stock Performance

ORCL traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $189.63. 4,541,897 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,247,340. 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 12 month low of $99.26 and a 12 month high of $191.77. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $169.43 and a 200-day simple moving average of $145.54. The stock has a market cap of $525.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.02.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. The business had revenue of $13.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.95 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.84%. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on ORCL. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Oracle from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Oracle from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Oracle from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. They set a "sector perform" rating and a $165.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $168.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total transaction of $1,042,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,076,685. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.