Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Down 0.5% – Here’s What Happened

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) fell 0.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $150.11 and last traded at $152.01. 2,211,692 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 8,491,876 shares. The stock had previously closed at $152.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on ORCL. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Oracle and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Stephens started coverage on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $167.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.20.

Oracle Stock Up 0.1 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $164.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $427.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

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

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.95%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 89.7% in the 4th 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. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

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.