Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Given New $160.00 Price Target at Citigroup

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) had its price target lowered by Citigroup from $194.00 to $160.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the enterprise software provider's stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Oracle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $176.85.

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Oracle Trading Down 2.5 %

ORCL stock traded down $3.78 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $147.11. The company had a trading volume of 5,934,028 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,103,990. Oracle has a 12 month low of $112.78 and a 12 month high of $198.31. 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 stock has a market cap of $411.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.98, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $166.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.49.

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

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid 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 1.36%. Oracle's payout ratio is presently 39.12%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total transaction of $64,050,487.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,565,931.52. This represents a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 42.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oracle

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 12.4% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 8,019 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 883 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its holdings in Oracle by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,325,268 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $395,295,000 after buying an additional 53,128 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Oracle by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $411,748,000 after buying an additional 121,874 shares during the period. United Bank grew its holdings in Oracle by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 11,430 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,948,000 after acquiring an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. increased its position in shares of Oracle by 7.5% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 10,767 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,835,000 after acquiring an additional 747 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.