Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Trading Up 0.8% – Time to Buy?

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) rose 0.8% on Monday . The company traded as high as $168.05 and last traded at $167.61. Approximately 2,052,821 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 4,357,997 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Oracle from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price 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. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $181.48.

Oracle Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $178.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $160.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $456.27 billion, a PE ratio of 39.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, December 9th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.01). Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The firm had revenue of $14.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.34 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Oracle Co. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 23rd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Oracle’s payout ratio is currently 39.12%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oracle

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Oracle by 21.9% during the 3rd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 312 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Second Line Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Oracle by 1.5% during the third quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 3,816 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $650,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Cadence Bank lifted its position in shares of Oracle by 0.8% in the third quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 7,605 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $1,296,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oracle by 0.4% in the third quarter. Eagle Rock Investment Company LLC now owns 17,626 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $3,003,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, W Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 3.1% during the third quarter. W Advisors LLC now owns 2,158 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $368,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.