Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Up 2.4% – Should You Buy?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) shares rose 2.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $154.80 and last traded at $152.83. Approximately 2,977,109 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 12,035,341 shares. The stock had previously closed at $149.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ORCL shares. BNP Paribas upgraded Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $210.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.71.

Oracle Trading Down 2.9 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $418.10 billion, a PE ratio of 36.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $165.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $170.01.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted 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). 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.41 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company 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 yield of 1.34%. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is 46.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,565,931.52. This trade represents a 23.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Oracle in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Oracle by 89.7% in the 4th 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 purchased a new position in Oracle during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.