Blue Whale Capital LLP Invests $3.84 Million in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Blue Whale Capital LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 27,206 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,841,000. Oracle comprises 0.3% of Blue Whale Capital LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Oracle by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,213,890 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $18,993,977,000 after acquiring an additional 1,514,569 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,466,713 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $2,319,604,000 after purchasing an additional 82,551 shares in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 14,599,902 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,539,268,000 after purchasing an additional 2,191,342 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in Oracle by 148.8% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,616,855,000 after purchasing an additional 7,699,141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Putnam Investments LLC grew its holdings in Oracle by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 12,339,385 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,300,941,000 after purchasing an additional 697,961 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $167.96 on Friday. Oracle Co. has a 52 week low of $99.26 and a 52 week high of $173.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68. The firm has a market cap of $465.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $142.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $131.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.23 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is presently 43.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Lawrence Joseph Ellison sold 1,125,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.69, for a total value of $161,651,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,145,732,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $164,630,281,802.57. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total transaction of $2,068,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Lawrence Joseph Ellison sold 1,125,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.69, for a total value of $161,651,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 1,145,732,353 shares in the company, valued at $164,630,281,802.57. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,610,402 shares of company stock worth $230,556,257. Corporate insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on ORCL shares. Melius raised shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup upped their price target on Oracle from $140.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Oracle from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Oracle from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Oracle from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Oracle has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.88.

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.