Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. LLC Buys 54,411 Shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL)

Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. LLC raised its stake in shares of Oracle Co. (NYSE:ORCL - Free Report) by 193.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 82,558 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock after acquiring an additional 54,411 shares during the quarter. Gilder Gagnon Howe & Co. LLC's holdings in Oracle were worth $13,757,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Oracle by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 71,281 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $11,878,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. UP Strategic Wealth Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. UP Strategic Wealth Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,896 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. Three Seasons Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Oracle during the 4th quarter worth about $1,805,000. Two Sigma Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oracle by 124.4% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Securities LLC now owns 7,045 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $1,174,000 after purchasing an additional 35,945 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its position in Oracle by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 992,784 shares of the enterprise software provider's stock valued at $165,438,000 after purchasing an additional 128,901 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.44% of the company's stock.

Oracle Stock Performance

NYSE:ORCL traded down $1.68 on Wednesday, hitting $139.11. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,213,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,334,531. Oracle Co. has a one year low of $113.65 and a one year high of $198.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $389.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $145.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $164.44. 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 (NYSE:ORCL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The enterprise software provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.02). The business 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%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 EPS. Research analysts predict that Oracle Co. will post 5 earnings per share for the current year.

Oracle Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Oracle's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Oracle's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ORCL shares. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Oracle from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Oracle from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Stephens assumed coverage on Oracle in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $167.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Oracle from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Oracle from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.42.

Insider Transactions at Oracle

In other Oracle news, Director Naomi O. Seligman sold 2,000 shares of Oracle stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.81, for a total value of $291,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,630 shares in the company, valued at $5,049,400.30. The trade was a 5.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Leon E. Panetta sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $129.77, for a total value of $648,850.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 58,090 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,538,339.30. This trade represents a 7.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 42.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.