Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Acquired by Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 31,425 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,683 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC's holdings in Oracle were worth $5,237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Howard Capital Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,019 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,366,000 after purchasing an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Oracle by 5.3% in the third 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 last quarter. United Bank raised its stake in Oracle by 4.8% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 11,430 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,948,000 after buying an additional 519 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 3rd quarter worth about $70,000. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,882,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oracle Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL traded down $1.28 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $153.59. The stock had a trading volume of 8,514,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,513,966. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The stock has a market cap of $429.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.55, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $164.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $170.44. Oracle Co. has a fifty-two week low of $112.78 and a fifty-two week high of $198.31.

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Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 an increase from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is 46.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ORCL. Barclays cut their target price on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $220.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Oracle from $194.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $179.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.