Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price Down 0.7% – Here’s Why

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) shares traded down 0.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $172.19 and last traded at $172.23. 1,503,635 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 8,372,392 shares. The stock had previously closed at $173.39.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ORCL. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Oracle from $160.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. BNP Paribas upgraded Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Oracle from $157.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Oracle currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $183.63.

Oracle Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $180.41 and a 200-day moving average of $156.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $478.92 billion, a PE ratio of 42.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

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

Oracle Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Institutional Trading of Oracle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Oracle by 16,023.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,065,083 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $351,890,000 after buying an additional 2,052,275 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Oracle by 11.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,480,384 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $3,370,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,917,416 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 70,441,556 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $12,003,241,000 after acquiring an additional 1,847,561 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $219,224,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Oracle by 2.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,194,683 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $5,977,015,000 after acquiring an additional 885,041 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company’s stock.

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.