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Can Oracle Reach a New ATH After its Earnings?

By:
Carolane De Palmas
Published: Sep 10, 2024, 07:25 GMT+00:00

Oracle's stock surged by nearly 9% on Monday, September 9th, following the release of its fiscal 2025 first-quarter earnings.

Oracle logo, FX Empire

In this article:

The company surpassed market expectations, fueled in part by the growing demand for cloud computing solutions linked to artificial intelligence demand.

In addition to the solid financial results and promising future, Oracle announced a pivotal strategic partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS). This collaboration marks a significant milestone for Oracle, as it continues to strengthen its position in the cloud computing market.

Traders are wondering how much Oracle may be poised to accelerate its cloud strategy to drive further growth. Will its collaboration with AWS lead to new product innovations and enhanced value for Oracle’s customers? Could Oracle’s strategic shift towards more advanced cloud computing and artificial intelligence solutions propel its stock price to new all-time highs?

This article will delve deeper into Oracle’s recent financial performance, the implications of the AWS partnership, and the potential future trajectory of the company’s stock. Let’s dive right in.

Can Oracle’s Cloud Strategy Be the Key to Its Success?

Oracle’s first-quarter performance provides a clear indication of the growing significance of its cloud strategy. As highlighted by Oracle CEO Safra Catz, “As Cloud Services became Oracle’s largest business, both our operating income and earnings per share growth accelerated.” This shift toward cloud services not only underscores the strategic direction of the company but also points to the potential for sustained growth in the future.

The company exceeded quarterly forecasts, driven primarily by the impressive growth in its cloud services segment. Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) is particularly well-positioned to capitalize on the rising demand for data processing, especially in the context of artificial intelligence (AI). Analysts from Morgan Stanley noted that the scarcity of AI hardware is a significant factor “driving businesses” to OCI, further reinforcing Oracle’s strong market position in cloud computing.

Financially, Oracle demonstrated robust performance. Revenue increased by 8% in constant currency, climbing from $12.45 billion to $13.3 billion year-over-year. Net income also saw a significant rise, reaching $2.93 billion, or $1.03 per share, compared to $2.42 billion, or 86 cents per share, in the same quarter last year.

The cloud services business was a key contributor, generating $5.6 billion in revenue—a 21% increase from the previous year. The cloud infrastructure segment alone brought in $2.2 billion, marking a 45% year-over-year growth, which is an acceleration from the previous quarter’s 42% growth.

In addition to these gains, Oracle’s financial health remains strong, with short-term deferred revenues at $11.5 billion, operating cash flow over the last twelve months at $19.1 billion, and free cash flow at $11.3 billion.

Given these results, Oracle’s cloud strategy appears to be a significant driver of its overall success, positioning the company to maintain its momentum in the highly competitive tech industry. The sustained demand for cloud computing, particularly for AI applications, suggests that Oracle’s focus on cloud infrastructure could indeed be the key to its future growth and market leadership.

After Google Cloud, Oracle Announces a Partnership with AWS

Oracle’s strategic push into the cloud computing market is beginning to pay off, as the Texas-based company narrows the gap with industry leaders like Microsoft and Amazon. However, Oracle isn’t just competing with these tech giants—it’s also collaborating with them to enhance its offerings and meet the growing demands of the market.

In June 2024, Oracle and Google Cloud announced a significant multi cloud partnership. Through this collaboration, Google Cloud now offers Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) database services, along with a high-speed network interconnect with Oracle to provide a unified platform for managing cloud resources across multiple providers. As of September 9, Oracle announced the general availability of Oracle Database on Google Cloud across four regions in the United States and Europe.

This marks the first time customers can directly access Oracle Database services running on OCI and hosted in Google Cloud data centers. With Oracle Database@Google Cloud, customers can easily develop new cloud applications or migrate existing Oracle databases and applications to OCI within Google Cloud. This collaboration also streamlines cloud purchasing and management, making it more accessible and efficient for users.

In addition to its partnership with Google Cloud, Oracle also announced on September 9 the launch of Oracle Database on AWS.

According to Oracle Chairman and CTO Larry Ellison, “We are seeing huge demand from customers that want to use multiple clouds.” This collaboration offers customers a unified experience across OCI and AWS, simplifying database management, billing, and support. Oracle Database@AWS is specifically designed to facilitate customers’ migration to the cloud and assist them in modernizing their IT infrastructure for enhanced efficiency, scalability, and cost-effectiveness.

Oracle’s partnerships with Google Cloud and AWS demonstrate its commitment to providing customers with a comprehensive and adaptable cloud platform. This strategy enables businesses to harness the power of multiple cloud environments, tailoring their IT infrastructure to meet specific needs and drive innovation.

Is Oracle’s Stock on a Winning Streak?

Oracle’s stock has been on a remarkable upward trajectory in recent years, driven by strategic deals and strong financial performance. The company’s shares reached a record high in 2024 following the announcement of key partnerships with Microsoft and OpenAI, alongside its June quarterly results.

This surge continued after the release of Oracle’s earnings on Monday, September 9, with shares climbing 9% in extended trading to approximately $153, marking a new all-time high. This represents a gain of over 40% since the start of 2024, pushing traders to wonder if Oracle’s stock is on a winning streak, and how much further it can go.

Daily Oracle Chart Before the Earning Release – Source: Online Trading Platform ActivTrader

The strong momentum behind Oracle’s growth is evident in its recent performance. Barclays analyst points to the robust growth in Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO) as a key indicator of the company’s success in the cloud and AI sectors.This indicator suggests that the company is well-positioned to exceed its revenue targets in the coming years.

Oracle has set ambitious goals, including a revenue target of $65 billion for fiscal year 2026. On Monday’s call with analysts, Oracle CEO Safra Catz reaffirmed the company’s expectations of achieving double-digit revenue growth for its fiscal year ending in May 2025.

With these strong fundamentals and strategic initiatives, Oracle appears well-positioned for continued growth, suggesting that its stock may indeed be on a winning streak. But how far can Oracle’s stock price go? Can the company sustain this momentum in the competitive tech landscape? What do you think?

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About the Author

Carolane graduated with a Masters in Corporate Finance & Financial Markets and got the AMF Certification (Financial Markets Regulator in France). Afterward, she became an independent trader, investing mostly in European and American stocks/indices.

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