Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 19,380,000 shares, a growth of 27.5% from the May 31st total of 15,200,000 shares. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 7,920,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Oracle Trading Up 0.7 %

ORCL stock traded up $1.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $141.20. 25,814,821 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,264,646. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.25, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.71. Oracle has a one year low of $99.26 and a one year high of $145.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $389.13 billion, a PE ratio of 38.06, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $125.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $118.08.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $14.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 223.01%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.35 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Oracle will post 5.01 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 11th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on ORCL. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $145.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.83.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other news, Director George H. Conrades sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.00, for a total value of $2,320,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,068,976. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Oracle news, Director Jeffrey Berg sold 22,500 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $143.12, for a total transaction of $3,220,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director George H. Conrades sold 20,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.00, for a total transaction of $2,320,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,068,976. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 385,639 shares of company stock worth $53,002,729 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ORCL. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Oracle by 18.0% during the first quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 530 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Invst LLC boosted its position in Oracle by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Invst LLC now owns 3,299 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC boosted its position in Oracle by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 7,334 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 8,516 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $898,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sovereign Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,244 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.