Oracle Corporation (Public, NASDAQ: ORCL) reports after the close today and Wall Street has high expectations for the company going into the earnings call. Which means, if they blow it, look out, and if they beat the street, it's on like Donkey Kong.
With shares trading in the mid range of their 52-week run, it's all on the line. Analysts on average expect Oracle (ORCL) to post earnings excluding special items of 30 cents a share for its fiscal third quarter ended in February, and $ 5.4 billion in revenue, according to FactSet Research.
That compares with earnings excluding special items of 25 cents a share and $ 4.41 billion in revenue in the same period a year earlier.
Oracle's most recent purchase was of BEA Systems Inc. (BEAS), a maker of so- called "middleware" used to connect disparate networks and programs. Oracle agreed to pay $8.5 billion for BEA in January, and the deal is expected to close later this year.
The Last 6 months has been a bumpy ride for ORCL shareholders:
Analysts have an average price target north of $25.00. April-expiration Options have too much time value to be of great indication today, but based upon the pullback seen it looks like options traders are braced for a move of more than $1.20 in either direction.
FBR Research analyst David Hilal wrote in a note to clients Tuesday that he expects Oracle to meet expectations for the quarter, as its "ability to provide the most complete enterprise software stack is emerging as its strongest competitive advantage."
Still, Hilal noted that Oracle's future outlook is slightly less certain, as " the challenging economic environment will limit upside." Points in Oracle's favor in this regard, Hilal wrote, include that fact that roughly 50% of its revenue comes from outside the U.S.
Avian Securities analyst Jeff Gaggin wrote in a note to clients Tuesday that he expects Oracle's guidance for future results to be "relatively upbeat in light of the economic slowdown in the U.S."
Best of luck to all of you with bets going into the call today.
Disclaimer: The Author does not have any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
