Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price Down 0.9% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) fell 0.9% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $171.64 and last traded at $172.60. 1,036,793 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 8,465,938 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.09.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ORCL. Melius raised shares of Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Oracle from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Oracle from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $167.42.

Oracle Stock Up 0.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.68, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $479.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.56, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $153.52 and a 200-day moving average of $137.62.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.06. Oracle had a return on equity of 171.38% and a net margin of 20.40%. The company had revenue of $13.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.95 earnings per share. Oracle’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 43.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total transaction of $2,068,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,010,030.10. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.89, for a total value of $2,068,350.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 58,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,010,030.10. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Maria Smith sold 6,320 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.00, for a total value of $1,042,800.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 42,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,076,685. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 42.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Oracle by 148.8% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 12,872,300 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,616,855,000 after purchasing an additional 7,699,141 shares during the period. PineStone Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Oracle by 131.2% during the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,911,201 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $552,262,000 after acquiring an additional 2,219,450 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in Oracle by 97.4% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 4,242,647 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $532,920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,093,893 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd lifted its stake in Oracle by 5,853.1% in the 2nd quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 1,552,580 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $219,224,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 151,213,890 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $18,993,977,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,569 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

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.