Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Down 1.5% – Here’s Why

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)’s share price traded down 1.5% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $160.01 and last traded at $161.56. 3,151,666 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 14,882,369 shares. The stock had previously closed at $164.00.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on ORCL shares. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Oracle from $173.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Oracle from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Oracle currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $182.73.

Oracle Stock Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $173.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.03. The stock has a market cap of $455.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.34 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5.01 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of Oracle 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 owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 21.9% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 312 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Second Line Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Oracle by 1.5% in the third quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 3,816 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $650,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Cadence Bank increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 0.8% during the third quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 7,605 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,296,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Requisite Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Oracle by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Requisite Capital Management LLC now owns 2,240 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McLean Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in Oracle by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 5,447 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $908,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

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.