Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading 1% Higher – Here’s What Happened

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) was up 1% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $175.49 and last traded at $175.17. Approximately 1,166,889 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 8,287,284 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.43.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ORCL shares. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Oracle from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, 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 research note on Monday, September 16th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $168.52.

Oracle Stock Up 1.3 %

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $161.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $141.16. 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 capitalization of $486.76 billion, a PE ratio of 45.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 1.01.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Oracle had a return on equity of 171.38% and a net margin of 20.40%. The business had revenue of $13.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.95 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 41.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In related news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total value of $1,042,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,076,685. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its position in Oracle by 6.1% during the first quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 3,273 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Oracle by 1.6% during the first quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 51,172 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $6,428,000 after buying an additional 814 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its position in Oracle by 14.4% during the first quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 48,044 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $6,035,000 after acquiring an additional 6,052 shares during the last quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 12,054 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,514,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 82,775 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $10,397,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.