Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price Up 1.2% - Here's What Happened

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 1.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $172.87 and last traded at $172.40. Approximately 2,228,724 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 14,569,750 shares. The stock had previously closed at $170.38.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ORCL shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $173.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Oracle in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $214.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, eighteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $182.73.

Oracle Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $471.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.05. The business's fifty day moving average is $171.89 and its 200 day moving average is $163.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle's quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.34 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.12%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the business'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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $207,565,931.52. The trade was a 23.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 70,441,556 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $12,003,241,000 after purchasing an additional 1,847,561 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Oracle by 2.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,194,683 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $5,977,015,000 after purchasing an additional 885,041 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Oracle by 11.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,480,384 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $3,370,640,000 after buying an additional 1,917,416 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 1.8% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,898,029 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,049,824,000 after buying an additional 310,709 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Oracle by 0.4% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 14,608,951 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $2,489,345,000 after buying an additional 54,868 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.