Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Down 0.6% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) were down 0.6% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $152.50 and last traded at $153.60. Approximately 2,357,214 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 6,993,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. BNP Paribas raised Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Oracle from $173.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Oracle has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.48.

Oracle Stock Up 1.3 %

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $176.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $161.24. The company has a market capitalization of $442.90 billion, a PE ratio of 38.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. The company had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.34 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Oracle Co. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is 39.12%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Oracle in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 89.7% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Oracle in the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Oracle during the 3rd quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Avondale Wealth Management bought a new position in Oracle in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. 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.