Bragg Financial Advisors Inc Has $35 Million Stock Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Bragg Financial Advisors Inc lessened its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 2.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 210,041 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after selling 5,626 shares during the period. Oracle comprises 1.4% of Bragg Financial Advisors Inc's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Bragg Financial Advisors Inc's holdings in Oracle were worth $35,001,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Advisors Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 212,941 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $35,485,000 after purchasing an additional 7,130 shares in the last quarter. Seeds Investor LLC grew its position in shares of Oracle by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Seeds Investor LLC now owns 6,265 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,044,000 after buying an additional 655 shares during the last quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth $2,456,000. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 432,372 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $72,051,000 after acquiring an additional 58,416 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $86,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ORCL. Stephens began coverage on Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $180.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $177.12.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. This represents a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock worth $453,791,001. 42.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Oracle Price Performance

ORCL traded up $1.39 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $136.03. 342,448 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,241,575. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $112.78 and a 1-year high of $198.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $380.47 billion, a PE ratio of 33.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business's 50-day moving average price is $154.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $167.39.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.47%. This is a positive change from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.95%.

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.