Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Friday morning.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $205.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Oracle from $173.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Oracle from $201.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Oracle in a report on Friday, January 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $214.00 price target on the stock. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.73.

Oracle Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $183.59 on Friday. Oracle has a 1-year low of $106.51 and a 1-year high of $198.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $174.41 and its 200 day moving average is $162.22. The stock has a market cap of $513.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 1.06.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced 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). The business had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.34 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Oracle will post 5.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Safra Catz sold 345,174 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.56, for a total value of $64,050,487.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fred Alger Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 5.4% in the second quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 26,970 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $3,808,000 after acquiring an additional 1,388 shares during the period. Delta Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Oracle during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $243,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Oracle during the second quarter valued at approximately $856,000. MBB Public Markets I LLC boosted its position in shares of Oracle by 1,903.0% during the second quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 149,244 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $21,073,000 after acquiring an additional 141,793 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its stake in Oracle by 37.5% during the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 17,122 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $2,418,000 after acquiring an additional 4,668 shares in the last quarter. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by 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.