Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Up 0.6% – Should You Buy?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)’s stock price was up 0.6% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $172.84 and last traded at $172.32. Approximately 2,297,783 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 8,380,750 shares. The stock had previously closed at $171.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Melius upgraded shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $183.63.

Oracle Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $180.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $156.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $472.10 billion, a PE ratio of 41.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.03.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.12 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.34 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Oracle Co. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. Oracle’s payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the third quarter worth about $44,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oracle in the 2nd quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the 3rd quarter valued at about $51,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.