PKS Advisory Services LLC Purchases New Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

PKS Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,145 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $357,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 12.4% during the third 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 during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised 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 buying an additional 121,874 shares in the last quarter. United Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 11,430 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,948,000 after acquiring an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Oracle by 66.3% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 4,835 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $824,000 after acquiring an additional 1,928 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Hawaii bought a new stake in Oracle during the third quarter worth approximately $200,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,565,931.52. This trade represents a 23.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Oracle Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $153.59 on Wednesday. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $164.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $170.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $429.58 billion, a PE ratio of 37.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s payout ratio is 46.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ORCL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays dropped their target price on Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.20.

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.