Associated Banc Corp Sells 1,265 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Associated Banc Corp trimmed its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 7,193 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 1,265 shares during the period. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in Oracle were worth $1,199,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ORCL. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 89.7% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 129.0% during the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Oracle Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $149.36 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $165.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.63. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $417.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. Oracle Co. has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced 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). The business had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.34%. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ORCL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Mizuho lifted 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. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective 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. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.71.

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.