Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Upgraded to Buy by Melius

Melius upgraded shares of Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has $210.00 price objective on the enterprise software provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Oracle from $159.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Argus upped their price target on shares of 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 given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $163.88.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $167.56 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68. Oracle has a fifty-two week low of $99.26 and a fifty-two week high of $173.99. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $131.44. The company has a market cap of $461.77 billion, a PE ratio of 45.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.01.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $13.31 billion during 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%. Oracle’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle will post 5.06 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 43.13%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other news, Chairman Lawrence Joseph Ellison sold 1,125,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 1,145,732,353 shares in the company, valued at $164,630,281,802.57. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total value of $1,042,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,076,685. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Lawrence Joseph Ellison sold 1,125,000 shares of the company’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 sale, the chairman now directly 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,610,402 shares of company stock worth $230,556,257. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. Brio Consultants LLC raised its position in shares of Oracle by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Brio Consultants LLC now owns 2,942 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Oracle by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Precision Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 3,951 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $417,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Gilbert & Cook Inc. bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $359,000. Aveo Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at about $290,000. Finally, 9258 Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Oracle by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 90,285 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $9,519,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Oracle Company 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.