Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Up 1.7% – Time to Buy?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) rose 1.7% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $147.77 and last traded at $146.70. Approximately 3,887,990 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 11,996,810 shares. The stock had previously closed at $144.18.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their target price on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on Oracle and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $176.85.

Oracle Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $423.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.90, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $166.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $169.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business had revenue of $14.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.41 EPS. Oracle’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.12%.

Insider Activity

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ORCL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,216,314,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $930,095,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 13,825,360 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $2,303,858,000 after buying an additional 2,350,448 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Oracle by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 157,411,949 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $26,231,127,000 after acquiring an additional 2,296,069 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in Oracle by 268.4% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 3,077,947 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $512,909,000 after buying an additional 2,242,520 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.