Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Has $1.36 Million Stock Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 65.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,979 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,158 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $1,360,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 148.8% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,616,855,000 after buying an additional 7,699,141 shares during the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Oracle by 131.2% in the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,911,201 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $552,262,000 after acquiring an additional 2,219,450 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in Oracle by 97.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,242,647 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $532,920,000 after purchasing an additional 2,093,893 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Oracle by 16,023.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,065,083 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $351,890,000 after purchasing an additional 2,052,275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd boosted its position in Oracle by 5,853.1% during the second quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 1,552,580 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $219,224,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,500 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of Oracle stock opened at $187.08 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $170.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $145.85. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $99.26 and a 1-year high of $191.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $518.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.06. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. The firm had revenue of $13.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.95 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.86%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Oracle from $160.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on Oracle from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $168.52.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total transaction of $1,042,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,076,685. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.