Brokerages Set Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Price Target at $145.83

Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seventeen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $145.83.

Several brokerages have commented on ORCL. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $125.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. UBS Group increased their price target on Oracle from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Oracle in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Oracle from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $159.00 to $171.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total transaction of $2,068,350.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,010,030.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Oracle news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total value of $2,068,350.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Jeffrey Berg sold 22,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.12, for a total transaction of $3,220,200.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 210,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,157,101.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,862,500 shares of company stock valued at $266,776,624. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Bbjs Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Oracle in the second quarter valued at about $35,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Down 4.0 %

NYSE:ORCL opened at $127.90 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $136.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.51. Oracle has a 52-week low of $99.26 and a 52-week high of $146.59. The company has a market cap of $352.47 billion, a PE ratio of 34.47, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.02. 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 (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $14.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.57 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 223.01% and a net margin of 19.76%. Oracle’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.35 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Oracle will post 5.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 11th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.13%.

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.