Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Thursday.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Oracle from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. KeyCorp upped their target price on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $173.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.48.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $159.73 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $446.76 billion, a PE ratio of 39.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.06. Oracle has a 52-week low of $105.68 and a 52-week high of $198.31. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $176.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $161.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Oracle will post 5.01 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle in the second quarter valued at $40,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Avondale Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Oracle in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Oracle in the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. 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.