Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price Down 3.7% – Should You Sell?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) was down 3.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $154.21 and last traded at $155.58. Approximately 3,008,679 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 11,384,048 shares. The stock had previously closed at $161.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ORCL. Citigroup boosted their price target on Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Oracle from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $145.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald downgraded shares of Oracle to an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $182.73.

Oracle Stock Up 3.3 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $436.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.11, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $167.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.12 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 23rd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oracle

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total transaction of $389,448,893.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Sunbeam Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oracle during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Oracle by 89.7% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 184 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Oracle in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.