Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $193.21 and last traded at $193.21, with a volume of 29033 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $190.75.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ORCL shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Oracle from $160.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. DA Davidson increased their target price on Oracle from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Oracle from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on Oracle from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.52.

Oracle Stock Up 2.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $540.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $174.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $148.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $13.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.23 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.95 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.82%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Oracle news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,076,685. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. Koesten Hirschmann & Crabtree INC. acquired a new stake in Oracle during the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.