Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Shares Down 2% After Insider Selling

Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)’s share price traded down 2% on Monday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $210.81 and last traded at $211.00. 8,844,251 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 9% from the average session volume of 9,720,206 shares. The stock had previously closed at $215.22.

Specifically, Vice Chairman Jeffrey Henley sold 400,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.42, for a total transaction of $76,168,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,097,576 shares in the company, valued at $209,000,421.92. This trade represents a 26.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on ORCL. Morgan Stanley reiterated a “positive” rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on Oracle from $214.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Oracle from $135.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Oracle in a research note on Thursday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Oracle presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $194.32.

Oracle Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $154.61 and its 200 day moving average is $160.49. The firm has a market cap of $589.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.57, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.32.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 11th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $15.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.58 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.63 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.08%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oracle

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Optima Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Oracle by 17.8% during the first quarter. Optima Capital LLC now owns 5,072 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $709,000 after acquiring an additional 767 shares in the last quarter. 1248 Management LLC grew its position in Oracle by 501.9% in the 1st quarter. 1248 Management LLC now owns 30,198 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $4,222,000 after purchasing an additional 25,181 shares in the last quarter. Cim LLC grew its position in Oracle by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Cim LLC now owns 2,204 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Oracle by 19.8% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 720 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $101,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hodges Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Oracle in the 1st quarter worth about $280,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.