Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.02 EPS

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02), Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $14.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. Oracle had a net margin of 21.16% and a return on equity of 133.25%. Oracle’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. Oracle updated its Q4 guidance to $1.61-1.65 EPS.

Oracle Stock Down 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ORCL opened at $144.29 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $166.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.62. Oracle has a 12-month low of $112.78 and a 12-month high of $198.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $403.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.65.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Oracle’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Oracle’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.12%.

Insider Activity

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oracle

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Oracle stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL) by 189.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 153,580 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock after buying an additional 100,494 shares during the period. Oracle accounts for approximately 0.7% of Brighton Jones LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest position. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Oracle were worth $25,593,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. 42.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ORCL shares. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Oracle from $200.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Oracle in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Oracle from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Oracle from $185.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Oracle from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.92.

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.