Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading Up 0.2% – Still a Buy?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) shares shot up 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $190.09 and last traded at $189.99. 902,225 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 8,233,065 shares. The stock had previously closed at $189.58.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ORCL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Oracle from $160.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $168.52.

Oracle Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $170.41 and its 200-day moving average is $145.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $518.41 billion, a PE ratio of 48.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 1.02.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $13.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.23 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 171.38% and a net margin of 20.40%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.95 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 41.24%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares in the company, valued at $7,076,685. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,213,890 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $18,993,977,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,569 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Oracle by 0.4% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,466,713 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $2,319,604,000 after buying an additional 82,551 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Oracle by 1.8% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,898,029 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $3,049,824,000 after buying an additional 310,709 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 13,242,340 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,869,816,000 after acquiring an additional 296,866 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 148.8% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,616,855,000 after acquiring an additional 7,699,141 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.