B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Has $27.26 Million Stock Position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG increased its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 163,583 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,896 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in Oracle were worth $27,256,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Oracle by 89.7% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. TFC Financial Management Inc. raised its position 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 buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL stock opened at $140.75 on Monday. Oracle Co. has a 1 year low of $112.78 and a 1 year high of $198.31. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $163.94 and its 200-day moving average is $170.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $393.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.41, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast 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 given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,565,931.52. This represents a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ORCL shares. Stephens began coverage on Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.20.

About Oracle

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.