Vanguard Group Inc. Has $26.23 Billion Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 157,411,949 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,296,069 shares during the period. Oracle makes up approximately 0.5% of Vanguard Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 5.63% of Oracle worth $26,231,127,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $411,748,000 after acquiring an additional 121,874 shares during the period. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Oracle by 201.7% during the fourth quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,599 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069 shares during the period. RMR Wealth Builders grew its stake in Oracle by 383.4% during the fourth quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 7,155 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,192,000 after buying an additional 5,675 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Oracle by 24.8% in the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 164,593 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $27,428,000 after buying an additional 32,718 shares during the period. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,800,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

ORCL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Oracle and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stephens assumed coverage on Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 price objective on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, KeyCorp restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $179.20.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total transaction of $64,050,487.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $207,565,931.52. This represents a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Oracle Trading Down 4.0 %

ORCL stock traded down $6.22 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $147.71. The stock had a trading volume of 13,208,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,533,980. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $164.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $170.28. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $112.78 and a 1-year high of $198.31. The firm has a market cap of $413.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 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 the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.35%. This is a positive change from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

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.