Oracle’s AI Bet: Is Now a Good Time to Buy the Stock?

Once a relatively stable stock, Oracle (ORCL) has become a focal point in the age of artificial intelligence (AI). This is driven by the company’s substantial investment in cloud computing and its position as a leading provider of software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions. Despite recent volatility, particularly around earnings announcements, Oracle’s stock has seen gains, currently trading up approximately 15% over the past year, but down 15% in 2026.

Margins are Key for Oracle

With a significant cloud computing backlog, Oracle’s ability to accelerate revenue growth was assured. The primary question revolved around the return on investment for its data center spending. The fiscal Q3 results provided some answers.

Recent Financial Performance

For the quarter, Oracle’s revenue increased by 22% year-over-year to $17.19 billion, exceeding the analyst consensus of $16.91 billion, as compiled by LSEG. Cloud revenue surged 44% to $8.9 billion. Within the cloud segment, cloud infrastructure revenue grew by 84% to $4.9 billion, while cloud application revenue increased by 13% to $4 billion. Software segment revenue saw a modest increase of 3% to $6.1 billion.

Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) climbed 21% year-over-year to $1.79, surpassing the analyst consensus of $1.70.

The company reported that its cloud computing gross margins, while lower than those for software, exceeded the previously guided range of 30% to 32%. This indicates a positive return on its AI infrastructure investments. With a substantial $553 billion in cloud computing signed contracts—a 325% year-over-year increase—achieving a strong return on these investments is crucial for Oracle’s continued growth. Oracle is focused on leveraging AI to drive these returns.

Future Outlook

Management maintained its fiscal-year forecast for revenue of $67 billion. For fiscal Q4, the company anticipates revenue growth between 19% and 21%, with cloud revenue jumping 46% to 50%. Adjusted earnings per share are expected to climb 15% to 17%, landing in the range of $1.96 to $2.00. Oracle now projects fiscal 2027 revenue to reach $90 billion.

Is Oracle Stock a Buy?

Oracle’s substantial cloud computing backlog and demonstrated ability to generate returns on its investments craft it an attractive prospect. The company also emphasizes the importance of AI in the SaaS landscape, asserting that companies adopting AI will be the leaders and disruptors. This aligns with broader industry trends. Oracle AI services are designed to facilitate this disruption.

With the stock trading significantly below its September 2025 highs, this may present a favorable entry point for investors seeking exposure to the cloud computing boom.

Key Data Points (March 14, 2026)

• Today’s Change: -2.60% (-$4.13)
• Current Price: $155.03
• Market Cap: $446B
• 52-Week Range: $118.86 – $345.72
• Volume: 1.1M
• Average Volume: 29M
• Gross Margin: 64.30%
• Dividend Yield: 1.29%

Oracle is investing heavily in AI infrastructure, including utilizing NVIDIA GB200 NVL72 Racks in its cloud regions. Oracle’s AI infrastructure is designed to support demanding AI workloads.