Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Up 3% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Oracle shares rose 3% on Thursday, touching an intraday high of $200.71, as trading volume came in below average. The stock last traded around $195.48 after closing at $189.76 the prior day.
• Investor sentiment remains upbeat on Oracle’s AI story, with analysts reaffirming constructive views and some price targets reaching as high as $275. Recent coverage also highlighted Oracle’s expanding AI infrastructure, government, and defense-related opportunities.
• Oracle’s latest earnings beat expectations, reporting $1.79 EPS on $17.19 billion in revenue, both above estimates, while revenue climbed 21.7% year over year. The company also maintained a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, implying a 1.0% annual yield.

Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) shot up 3% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $200.71 and last traded at $195.4830. 22,249,161 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 20% from the average session volume of 27,850,893 shares. The stock had previously closed at $189.76.

Oracle News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Oracle this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush and other analysts reiterated a constructive view on Oracle, with price targets as high as $275 and commentary that investors may be underestimating Oracle’s position in the next phase of AI demand. Oracle's AI Infrastructure Bet Gains Support
• Positive Sentiment: Investor chatter was boosted after President Trump’s latest disclosure showed Oracle positions alongside other AI leaders, fueling the view that Oracle is a favored AI infrastructure name with further upside potential. Oracle Stock (ORCL) Opinions on Trump’s Q1 2026 Trades Disclosure
• Positive Sentiment: Oracle is expanding its agentic AI push through U.S. defense partnerships, reinforcing the bull case that its AI and government business could support longer-term growth. Oracle (ORCL) Expands Its Agentic AI Push Through U.S. Defense Partnerships
• Positive Sentiment: Oracle added Cleveland Clinic CEO Tomislav Mihaljevic to its board, a move that may strengthen its healthcare strategy and deepen ties to a key end market. Oracle adds Cleveland Clinic CEO to board of directors
• Neutral Sentiment: Oracle continues to attract heavy institutional attention, but insider sales remain a caution point; recent filings show no insider buys and several notable sales over the past six months.
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent coverage also highlighted Oracle’s strong revenue growth and expanding government-contract footprint, but those themes largely reinforce the already positive AI and cloud narrative rather than add a new catalyst.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on ORCL. Barclays cut their target price on Oracle from $310.00 to $230.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 9th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Oracle from $400.00 to $320.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Oracle from $240.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Oppenheimer raised their target price on Oracle from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt restated a "hold" rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-nine have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $261.46.

Oracle Stock Up 3.0%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.66, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $161.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $183.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $562.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.55.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $17.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 62.70% and a net margin of 25.30%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.47 earnings per share. Oracle has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 1.960-2.000 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Oracle Corporation will post 6.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 9th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 9th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Oracle's payout ratio is presently 35.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Stuart Levey sold 15,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $176.19, for a total transaction of $2,642,850.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,429 shares of the company's stock, valued at $604,155.51. This trade represents a 81.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 40.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oracle

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. grew its position in Oracle by 1.1% during the third quarter. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. now owns 3,943 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,109,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp grew its position in Oracle by 1.1% during the third quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 4,275 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $1,202,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas boosted its holdings in Oracle by 0.3% during the third quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 15,728 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $4,423,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Bridge Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Oracle by 3.0% during the third quarter. Beacon Bridge Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,543 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everest Management Corp. boosted its holdings in Oracle by 0.9% during the third quarter. Everest Management Corp. now owns 5,265 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,481,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oracle Company Profile

Oracle Corporation is a multinational technology company that develops and sells database software, cloud engineered systems, enterprise software applications and related services. The company is widely known for its flagship Oracle Database and a portfolio of enterprise-grade software products that support data management, application development, analytics and middleware. Over recent years Oracle has expanded its focus to include cloud infrastructure and cloud applications, positioning itself as a provider of both platform and software-as-a-service solutions for large organizations.

Oracle's product and service offerings include Oracle Database and the Autonomous Database, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), enterprise resource planning (ERP), human capital management (HCM) and supply chain management (SCM) cloud applications (often grouped under Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications), middleware such as WebLogic, and developer technologies including Java and MySQL.

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