Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $148.79, but opened at $143.42. Oracle shares last traded at $143.58, with a volume of 4,430,682 shares changing hands.

The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.42%. Oracle’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Oracle from $205.00 to $175.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Oracle from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised Oracle from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.23.

Insider Activity at Oracle

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oracle

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 5.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,416,362 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $411,748,000 after acquiring an additional 121,874 shares during the period. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Oracle by 201.7% during the 4th quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,599 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $266,000 after acquiring an additional 1,069 shares in the last quarter. RMR Wealth Builders grew its stake in shares of Oracle by 383.4% during the 4th quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 7,155 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $1,192,000 after acquiring an additional 5,675 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 24.8% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 164,593 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $27,428,000 after purchasing an additional 32,718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Oracle during the fourth quarter worth $1,800,000. Institutional investors own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

Oracle Stock Down 5.0 %

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $167.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $169.58. 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 has a market capitalization of $395.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07.

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.