Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Down 3.1% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) were down 3.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $133.80 and last traded at $134.93. Approximately 2,017,221 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 9,197,806 shares. The stock had previously closed at $139.19.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ORCL. StockNews.com cut Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Oracle from $220.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $220.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.65.

Oracle Trading Down 0.8 %

The company has a market capitalization of $369.94 billion, a PE ratio of 32.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $167.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.95%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,331,027.20. This trade represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at $5,049,400.30. This trade represents a 5.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,448,328 shares of company stock valued at $453,791,001. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

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