Mizuho Securities USA LLC Has $25.38 Million Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 47.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 152,328 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 48,680 shares during the quarter. Oracle comprises 0.5% of Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $25,384,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ORCL. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 129.0% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on ORCL shares. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. StockNews.com lowered Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.20.

Oracle Price Performance

Oracle stock opened at $152.83 on Friday. 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 has a market capitalization of $427.45 billion, a PE ratio of 37.37, 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. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $164.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $169.85.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted 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 firm had revenue of $14.13 billion during 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%. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.41 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

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.