Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading Down 2.6% - Should You Sell?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) shares dropped 2.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $128.84 and last traded at $129.90. Approximately 2,296,308 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 9,230,129 shares. The stock had previously closed at $133.35.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on ORCL shares. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Oracle from $212.00 to $202.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Oracle from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Thirteen investment 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, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $178.27.

Oracle Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $375.72 billion, a PE ratio of 32.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $155.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $167.63.

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Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.49%. This is a positive change from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle's payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock valued at $453,791,001. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Parisi Gray Wealth Management grew its position in Oracle by 1.7% during the first quarter. Parisi Gray Wealth Management now owns 12,722 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,779,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the period. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Oracle by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,094 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $852,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 6.9% during the first quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 71,773 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $10,035,000 after purchasing an additional 4,618 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 26.2% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 61,406 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $8,716,000 after purchasing an additional 12,752 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. grew its holdings in Oracle by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 27,980 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $3,912,000 after purchasing an additional 1,481 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.