Beck Mack & Oliver LLC Invests $669,000 in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Beck Mack & Oliver LLC acquired a new position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,017 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $669,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Oracle by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $411,748,000 after purchasing an additional 121,874 shares during the period. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Oracle by 201.7% in the fourth quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,599 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 1,069 shares during the period. RMR Wealth Builders boosted its position in Oracle by 383.4% in the fourth quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 7,155 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,192,000 after purchasing an additional 5,675 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 24.8% during the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 164,593 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $27,428,000 after purchasing an additional 32,718 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,800,000. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $128.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $150.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $166.34. Oracle Co. has a 1 year low of $112.78 and a 1 year high of $198.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $359.58 billion, a PE ratio of 31.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 business 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%. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.73.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was 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 owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 34,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. This trade represents a 5.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 2,453,328 shares of company stock valued at $454,439,851. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

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.