Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading Up 0.8%

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) was up 0.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $140.88 and last traded at $140.48. Approximately 802,236 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 8,009,610 shares. The stock had previously closed at $139.42.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Oracle from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. StockNews.com downgraded Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Oracle from $133.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on Oracle from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.83.

Oracle Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $138.65 and a 200 day moving average of $127.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $387.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.87, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.02.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $14.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.57 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 223.01%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.35 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 11th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 11th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other news, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total value of $34,042,967.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 2,626,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $379,042,045.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Oracle news, Director Jeffrey Berg sold 22,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.12, for a total value of $3,220,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 210,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,157,101.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Edward Screven sold 235,918 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.30, for a total transaction of $34,042,967.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 2,626,764 shares in the company, valued at $379,042,045.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,862,500 shares of company stock worth $266,776,624 over the last three months. Company insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Contour Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 41.5% during the 4th quarter. Contour Asset Management LLC now owns 2,192,950 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $231,203,000 after purchasing an additional 643,490 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its position in shares of Oracle by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 29,301 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $3,089,000 after acquiring an additional 3,291 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 16,995 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,792,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Seven Mile Advisory lifted its stake in Oracle by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Seven Mile Advisory now owns 5,236 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $552,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the period. Finally, Goelzer Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Oracle by 25.0% during the first quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,492 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $941,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. 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.