Weitz Investment Management Inc. Has $34.59 Million Stock Holdings in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Weitz Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 207,575 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after selling 7,125 shares during the period. Oracle makes up 1.8% of Weitz Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Weitz Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Oracle were worth $34,590,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,216,314,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at about $930,095,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Oracle by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 157,411,949 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $26,231,127,000 after purchasing an additional 2,296,069 shares during the period. Polen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Oracle by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 10,723,731 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,787,003,000 after purchasing an additional 1,955,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Oracle by 11.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,480,384 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $3,370,640,000 after buying an additional 1,917,416 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Oracle Trading Up 1.6 %

Oracle stock opened at $142.05 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $162.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $170.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $397.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.73, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. Oracle Co. has a 52 week low of $112.78 and a 52 week high of $198.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued 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). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.65.

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.