Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Reduces Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd reduced its stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 129,749 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 1,393 shares during the quarter. Oracle accounts for 0.5% of Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in Oracle were worth $21,621,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Oracle by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 70,441,556 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $12,003,241,000 after buying an additional 1,847,561 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 2.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,194,683 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $5,977,015,000 after purchasing an additional 885,041 shares during the period. 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. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Oracle by 1.8% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,898,029 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $3,049,824,000 after acquiring an additional 310,709 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Oracle by 0.4% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 14,608,951 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $2,489,345,000 after acquiring an additional 54,868 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oracle Stock Performance

ORCL opened at $172.37 on Thursday. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $169.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $168.15. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $109.79 and a 1-year high of $198.31. The company has a market cap of $482.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.14, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.05.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.12%.

Insider Activity

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred 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 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut shares of Oracle to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of Oracle from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.73.

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.