Citigroup Issues Positive Forecast for Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citigroup raised its price target for Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) from $196 to $240, suggesting a potential upside of 0.51% based on the current stock price, while maintaining a "neutral" rating.
• The company's latest earnings report revealed a Q2 revenue growth of 11.3% year-over-year, with earnings per share exceeding analysts' expectations at $1.70.
• Currently, Oracle has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with 22 buy ratings and 10 hold ratings, and an average target price of $235.61.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by Citigroup from $196.00 to $240.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the enterprise software provider's stock. Citigroup's price target would indicate a potential upside of 0.51% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on ORCL. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Oracle from $145.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $235.61.

Oracle Stock Up 2.6%

ORCL stock opened at $238.78 on Tuesday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $239.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $187.22. The stock has a market cap of $670.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.02, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.46. Oracle has a twelve month low of $118.86 and a twelve month high of $260.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.07.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.06. Oracle had a net margin of 21.68% and a return on equity of 87.34%. The company had revenue of $15.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. Oracle's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Oracle will post 5 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Clayton M. Magouyrk sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.10, for a total value of $3,211,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 60,722 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,000,580.20. This represents a 19.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 3,303 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.32, for a total transaction of $770,655.96. Following the sale, the director owned 31,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,337,214.04. The trade was a 9.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 444,183 shares of company stock valued at $86,521,198. Insiders own 42.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 71.6% in the 1st quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 257,378 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $35,984,000 after purchasing an additional 107,404 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. raised its stake in Oracle by 4.3% in the first quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 51,350 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $7,179,000 after buying an additional 2,110 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the first quarter worth $732,692,000. Rockland Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Rockland Trust Co. now owns 10,165 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,421,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares during the period. Finally, Calamos Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Oracle by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 711,290 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $99,445,000 after acquiring an additional 10,426 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently 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.

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