Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading Up 0.9% – Time to Buy?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) was up 0.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $171.39 and last traded at $171.11. Approximately 1,027,132 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 8,252,218 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.59.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ORCL. Melius Research raised shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Friday, October 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Oracle from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Oracle from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Oracle from $201.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $168.52.

Oracle Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68. The stock has a market cap of $474.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $164.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.62.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its earnings results on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $13.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.23 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 20.40% and a return on equity of 171.38%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.95 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total transaction of $1,042,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,076,685. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Oracle by 148.8% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,616,855,000 after purchasing an additional 7,699,141 shares in the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 131.2% in the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,911,201 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $552,262,000 after acquiring an additional 2,219,450 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Oracle by 97.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,242,647 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $532,920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,093,893 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Oracle by 16,023.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,065,083 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $351,890,000 after acquiring an additional 2,052,275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd raised its position in Oracle by 5,853.1% during the second quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 1,552,580 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $219,224,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,500 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is currently 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.