Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading Down 0.3%

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 0.3% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $121.32 and last traded at $122.90. Approximately 1,055,055 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 8,749,734 shares. The stock had previously closed at $123.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Oracle from $135.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 12th. Argus raised shares of Oracle from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Wolfe Research reduced their price target on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $126.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 12th. Finally, Erste Group Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Friday, December 22nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $130.76.

Oracle Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $334.55 billion, a PE ratio of 32.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.34. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $118.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.19.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.04. Oracle had a return on equity of 336.11% and a net margin of 20.27%. The business had revenue of $13.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.96 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.22%.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In related news, CEO Safra Catz sold 790,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.54, for a total value of $99,966,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $141,546,631.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 42.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Oracle by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 149,699,321 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $15,782,799,000 after purchasing an additional 2,425,908 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Oracle by 2.6% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 62,586,810 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $5,815,566,000 after acquiring an additional 1,570,528 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Oracle by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 20,502,544 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,675,878,000 after acquiring an additional 1,794,080 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Oracle by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 18,718,180 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,982,630,000 after purchasing an additional 635,994 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 22.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 18,384,162 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,938,242,000 after purchasing an additional 3,323,334 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.