Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price Up 2.3% - Should You Buy?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) shares shot up 2.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $129.25 and last traded at $127.35. 3,302,451 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the average session volume of 9,154,689 shares. The stock had previously closed at $124.50.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on ORCL. Royal Bank of Canada set a $145.00 price objective on shares of Oracle and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price objective on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $178.65.

Oracle Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average of $155.25 and a 200-day moving average of $167.63. The stock has a market cap of $369.94 billion, a PE ratio of 32.34, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

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

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total value of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,565,931.52. The trade was a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock valued at $453,791,001. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Oracle in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company's stock.

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.