JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock Price

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) had its price objective decreased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $270.00 to $230.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the enterprise software provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 21.28% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Barclays set a $310.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Thursday. Baird R W upgraded Oracle to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BNP Paribas set a $377.00 target price on Oracle in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. HSBC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $382.00 target price on shares of Oracle in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Oracle in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $301.57.

Oracle Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ORCL opened at $189.64 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $245.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $240.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $540.62 billion, a PE ratio of 35.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.66. Oracle has a fifty-two week low of $118.86 and a fifty-two week high of $345.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.28, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.62. Oracle had a net margin of 25.28% and a return on equity of 70.60%. The company had revenue of $16.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.47 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Oracle will post 5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Maria Smith sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.62, for a total transaction of $1,403,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 47,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,212,431.46. This represents a 9.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,222 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.91, for a total value of $641,958.02. Following the sale, the director owned 29,225 shares in the company, valued at $8,443,394.75. This represents a 7.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 171,513 shares of company stock valued at $50,397,893. 40.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Oracle by 189.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 153,580 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $25,593,000 after buying an additional 100,494 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Oracle by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,418 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $903,000 after buying an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. grew its position in shares of Oracle by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. now owns 1,762 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. American Money Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. American Money Management LLC now owns 2,944 shares of the enterprise software provider’s stock valued at $412,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Varenne Capital Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Oracle during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $167,000. 42.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.