Independent Franchise Partners LLP Purchases 240,956 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Independent Franchise Partners LLP increased its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,138,455 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after purchasing an additional 240,956 shares during the quarter. Oracle makes up approximately 5.2% of Independent Franchise Partners LLP's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Independent Franchise Partners LLP owned about 0.15% of Oracle worth $689,632,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in Oracle by 129.0% in the 4th quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ORCL. Westpark Capital started coverage on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Oracle from $210.00 to $180.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $177.12.

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Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL stock traded down $0.81 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $133.83. The company had a trading volume of 8,619,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,290,326. The firm has a market cap of $374.33 billion, a PE ratio of 32.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $153.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $167.15. Oracle Co. has a one year low of $112.78 and a one year 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 announced its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle's quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. This is a boost from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In related news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction 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. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was 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 owns 1,118,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,453,328 shares of company stock worth $454,439,851 in the last three months. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.