Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $182.73.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Oracle in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $205.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd.

Insider Activity at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 42.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ORCL. Ascent Group LLC grew its holdings in Oracle by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 15,525 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $2,587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,210 shares in the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter worth about $307,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Oracle in the 4th quarter worth approximately $383,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Oracle by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,883,060 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $480,433,000 after purchasing an additional 333,755 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP grew its position in shares of Oracle by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 14,069 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $2,344,000 after buying an additional 846 shares during the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $167.92 on Monday. Oracle has a one year low of $109.66 and a one year high of $198.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $469.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.06, a PEG ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s fifty day moving average is $168.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.02.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.12 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Oracle will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.12%.

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.