Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Down 1.1%

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) shares dropped 1.1% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $166.81 and last traded at $168.46. Approximately 4,341,066 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 49% from the average daily volume of 8,546,357 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.33.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on ORCL. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Melius upgraded Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday. Bank of America boosted their price target on Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on Oracle from $145.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.88.

Oracle Trading Down 1.8 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $140.35 and a 200-day moving average of $130.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $463.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $13.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total value of $34,042,967.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,626,764 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,042,045.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 stock was sold at an average price of $143.69, for a total transaction of $161,651,250.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 1,145,732,353 shares in the company, valued at approximately $164,630,281,802.57. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total transaction of $34,042,967.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,626,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $379,042,045.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,862,500 shares of company stock worth $266,776,624. Insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ORCL. Verity & Verity LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 2,241 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Oracle by 5.8% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,927 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the second quarter worth about $2,141,000. Lazari Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 10.3% during the second quarter. Lazari Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,867 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,127,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

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.