BMO Capital Markets Has Lowered Expectations for Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) had its target price dropped by stock analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $205.00 to $175.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The firm presently has a “market perform” rating on the enterprise software provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective points to a potential upside of 17.55% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on ORCL. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. KeyCorp raised their target price on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.23.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of ORCL opened at $148.87 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $167.27 and a 200-day moving average of $169.58. Oracle has a one year low of $111.18 and a one year high of $198.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $416.38 billion, a PE ratio of 36.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.41 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Oracle will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,565,931.52. This trade represents a 23.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 42.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oracle

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ORCL. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 21.9% in the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 312 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Second Line Capital LLC raised its stake in Oracle by 1.5% in the third quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 3,816 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $650,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Cadence Bank lifted its position in Oracle by 0.8% during the third quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 7,605 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,296,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Requisite Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Requisite Capital Management LLC now owns 2,240 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $373,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Oracle by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 1,423 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

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.