13,824 Shares in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Purchased by Entropy Technologies LP

Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 13,824 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,304,000.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ORCL. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in Oracle in the 3rd quarter valued at $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $174.53 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $170.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $164.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Oracle Co. has a 1-year low of $106.51 and a 1-year high of $198.31. The stock has a market cap of $488.15 billion, a PE ratio of 42.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.05.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.34 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on ORCL. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Oracle from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $130.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, December 20th. BNP Paribas raised Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Oracle in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was 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 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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.