Fairfield Bush & CO. Increases Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Fairfield Bush & CO. increased its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 46,042 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,991 shares during the period. Oracle makes up about 4.5% of Fairfield Bush & CO.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Fairfield Bush & CO.'s holdings in Oracle were worth $7,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth $2,216,314,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $930,095,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Oracle by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 157,411,949 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $26,231,127,000 after buying an additional 2,296,069 shares during the last quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 10,723,731 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,787,003,000 after purchasing an additional 1,955,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Oracle by 11.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,480,384 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $3,370,640,000 after buying an additional 1,917,416 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL traded down $1.20 during trading on Friday, reaching $128.56. 8,919,409 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,320,254. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $150.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $166.34. The firm has a market cap of $359.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last released 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 business had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. Oracle's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.56%. Oracle's payout ratio is 46.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Oracle from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Stephens initiated coverage on Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $176.73.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total value of $648,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This trade represents a 7.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,565,931.52. The trade was a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,453,328 shares of company stock valued at $454,439,851. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Oracle 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.