Oracle Q4 earnings: 'continued strong AI demand to push $ORCL sales'

Oracle Inc (NYSE: ORCL) is up 10% in extended hours even though it came in below Street estimates for its fiscal fourth quarter.

Why is Oracle stock up in after-hours?

Investors are cheering because cloud segment of the computer technology company remained strong, bringing in $5.3 billion in revenue – up 20% on a year-over-year basis.

$ORCL is pushing to the upside also because it announced new deals with Google and OpenAI on Tuesday. Safra Catz – its chief executive said in a press release:

The New York listed firm announced 40 cents a share of quarterly cash dividend on Tuesday. Oracle stock is currently up some 20% versus its year-to-date low.

Notable figures in Oracle Q4 earnings release

• Earned $3.14 billion versus the year-ago $3.31 billion
• Per-share earnings also decline from $1.19 to $1.11
• Adjusted EPS printed at $1.63 as per the earnings report
• Revenue jumped 3.0% year-over-year to $14.3 billion
• Consensus was $1.65 a share on $14.6 billion in revenue

Oracle ended the fourth quarter with $98 billion of total remaining performance obligations – up 44%. CEO Catz also said on Tuesday:

$ORCL teams up with Google and OpenAI

Oracle Inc is bringing its database to Google Cloud (expected in September 2024).

OpenAI has also opted for its public cloud to extend $MSFT artificial intelligence infrastructure. Larry Ellison - chairman of $ORCL said in a press release on Tuesday:

Ahead of the earnings release, Morgan Stanley analyst Keith Weiss reiterated his "equal-weight" rating on Oracle stock. His $155 price objective, however, signals potential for a 15% upside on top of after-hours gain on Tuesday. Weiss expects ORCL shares to climb on the back of momentum in large and long-term deals.