Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on ORCL. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $182.73.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $174.08 on Tuesday. Oracle has a twelve month low of $106.51 and a twelve month high of $198.31. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $169.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $165.29. The company has a market capitalization of $486.89 billion, a PE ratio of 42.56, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The business had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. Oracle’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Oracle will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.92%. Oracle’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 89.7% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Oracle by 129.0% in the fourth quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 213 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. 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.