Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading 1.8% Higher

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)’s stock price shot up 1.8% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $142.75 and last traded at $142.73. 1,945,461 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 8,528,758 shares. The stock had previously closed at $140.18.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $142.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, June 17th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Oracle from $145.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $125.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Oracle from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $145.83.

Oracle Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $389.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50 day moving average of $125.24 and a 200 day moving average of $118.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.25.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.65 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $14.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 19.76% and a return on equity of 223.01%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.35 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 11th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is 43.13%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director George H. Conrades sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.13, for a total transaction of $2,903,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 17,836 shares in the company, valued at $2,071,294.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director George H. Conrades sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.13, for a total transaction of $2,903,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,071,294.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Edward Screven sold 37,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.19, for a total value of $5,218,011.99. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 2,626,764 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $368,246,045.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 385,639 shares of company stock valued at $53,002,729. Insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle in the first quarter worth $25,000. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the third quarter worth $27,000. Tidemark LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Nordwand Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 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.