Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price Down 0.4% – Time to Sell?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)’s stock price dropped 0.4% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $187.22 and last traded at $187.35. Approximately 1,473,802 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 8,224,746 shares. The stock had previously closed at $188.19.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ORCL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Guggenheim raised their price target on Oracle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Oracle from $105.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.52.

Oracle Stock Down 1.0 %

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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $178.54 and a 200 day moving average of $153.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $516.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.28, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.03.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. The business had revenue of $13.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.95 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. 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 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.86%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of the business’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 transaction of $1,042,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares in the company, valued at $7,076,685. The trade was a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle in the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently 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.