Argent Trust Co Raises Stock Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Argent Trust Co grew its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 108,258 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,588 shares during the quarter. Oracle comprises 0.7% of Argent Trust Co’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Oracle were worth $18,040,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Oracle by 89.7% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays reduced their price target on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.65.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL traded down $4.36 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $134.83. 587,130 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,193,316. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $156.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $168.09. The stock has a market cap of $377.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.97, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. Oracle Co. has a one year low of $112.78 and a one year high of $198.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at $5,049,400.30. This represents a 5.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock worth $453,791,001. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

About Oracle

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.