Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price Down 5.2% Following Weak Earnings

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) shares traded down 5.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a dissappointing earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $137.70 and last traded at $141.10. 11,847,020 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 0% from the average session volume of 11,831,542 shares. The stock had previously closed at $148.79.

The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a return on equity of 133.25% and a net margin of 21.16%. Oracle’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.41 EPS.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. This is an increase from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ORCL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Oracle from $195.00 to $175.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Oracle from $190.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Oracle news, CEO Safra Catz sold 2,101,154 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $185.35, for a total value of $389,448,893.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,118,592 shares in the company, valued at $207,331,027.20. This represents a 65.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 42.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ORCL. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 157,411,949 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $26,231,127,000 after buying an additional 2,296,069 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Oracle by 2.7% during the third 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 last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Oracle by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 38,002,902 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $6,332,803,000 after acquiring an additional 156,269 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Oracle by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 35,814,302 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $5,954,961,000 after purchasing an additional 619,619 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Oracle by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 20,202,421 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $3,366,531,000 after purchasing an additional 1,722,037 shares during the period. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Oracle Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $167.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $169.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $396.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.72, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

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.