Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading Down 2.3% - What's Next?

Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) fell 2.3% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $164.44 and last traded at $166.06. 2,685,029 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 11,807,042 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.96.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on ORCL shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Oracle from $173.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup increased their target price on Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $182.73.

Oracle Trading Down 0.9 %

The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $168.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $168.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $471.31 billion, a PE ratio of 41.20, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.05.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (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 analysts' expectations of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The business's revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.34 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.12%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. The trade was a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Oracle in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.