Prudential PLC Grows Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Prudential PLC increased its stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 9.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 176,592 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,102 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in Oracle were worth $29,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Oracle Trading Down 6.6 %

Shares of ORCL traded down $9.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $128.17. The stock had a trading volume of 14,968,758 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,095,138. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The firm has a market cap of $358.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.34, 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 quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $160.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $169.33.

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

Oracle Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 42.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ORCL shares. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $194.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $178.65.

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.