Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Up 1.4% – Time to Buy?

Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) shot up 1.4% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $159.15 and last traded at $158.56. 2,939,935 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 7,317,241 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.31.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ORCL. KeyCorp raised their price target on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $201.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $182.73.

Oracle Trading Up 0.9 %

The business has a 50-day moving average of $176.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $161.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $450.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.38, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 1.06.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion during 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 business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.34 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 33,689 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $4,757,000 after purchasing an additional 2,103 shares during the last quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. increased its position in shares of Oracle by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Waterloo Capital L.P. now owns 8,934 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,261,000 after purchasing an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. LJI Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Oracle by 201.7% during the 2nd quarter. LJI Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,858 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 3,248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WCG Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Oracle by 26.9% in the second quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 56,602 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $7,992,000 after buying an additional 12,014 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

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.