Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Given Neutral Rating at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group reissued their neutral rating on shares of Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) in a research report released on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a $195.00 target price on the enterprise software provider's stock, up from their prior target price of $145.00.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $156.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. JMP Securities set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Oracle and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Thursday. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 target price (up from $200.00) on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets raised Oracle from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the company from $200.00 to $235.00 in a report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $194.32.

Oracle Price Performance

Oracle stock traded down $4.28 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $210.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 22,594,076 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,678,126. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $118.86 and a fifty-two week high of $216.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $589.98 billion, a PE ratio of 51.57, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.32. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $152.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.31.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $15.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.58 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Oracle will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Oracle's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.08%.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other news, Vice Chairman Jeffrey Henley sold 400,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.42, for a total transaction of $76,168,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,097,576 shares in the company, valued at approximately $209,000,421.92. This trade represents a 26.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total transaction of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,630 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,049,400.30. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 427,366 shares of company stock valued at $80,183,723 in the last three months. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oracle

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ORCL. Capital & Planning LLC grew its position in Oracle by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 15,727 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $2,621,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Oracle by 189.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 153,580 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $25,593,000 after acquiring an additional 100,494 shares during the period. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,084,000. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Oracle by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,418 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $903,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Oracle by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 2,876 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $479,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.