Oracle shares (ORCL) are still in free fall. The stock dropped nearly 4% on Wednesday and is now more than 30% below its September peak, which is a brutal stretch for investors who once saw the software giant as one of the biggest AI winners.
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But some on Wall Street say the selloff looks overdone. Mizuho Securities analyst Siti Panigrahi reiterated a Buy rating and a $400 price target, suggesting Oracle could climb more than 75% from current levels. Panigrahi said the company remains “well positioned to exceed expectations” when it reports second-quarter results in December.
Analysts Stay Bullish on ORCL Despite the Slide
Oracle’s September surge, a 36% jump in one day, came after the company revealed that its backlog of contracted work had tripled to $455 billion. This figure showed booming demand for renting AI server capacity in the cloud.
Since then, though, sentiment has turned sharply lower. Investors have fretted over slimmer margins and unclear financing details, with shares falling in 14 of the past 19 trading sessions. Even so, 25 of the 37 analysts tracked by TipRanks still rate the stock a Buy.
AI Backlog Keeps the Bull Case Alive
Panigrahi pointed to one key number that hasn’t changed: Oracle’s AI backlog. The company’s deals with hyperscalers and enterprise clients continue to expand, supporting long-term growth as those contracts convert into real infrastructure and recurring revenue.
Mizuho also noted that rival CoreWeave’s (CRWV) recent update emphasized just how strong AI demand remains. While CoreWeave warned of a temporary data-center delay, its results confirmed that GPU resources remain flexible and in high demand, which is a positive sign for Oracle’s own AI buildout.
Execution Will Be Key
The next few months will test whether Oracle can turn its AI momentum into profit. Investors are looking for better visibility into its capital spending plans and progress on large-scale data-center projects such as Abilene, Texas, which management says remains on track.
Phillip Securities’ Paul Chew echoed this view, keeping a Buy rating and a $350 target, but said the company needs “faster execution of multi-billion-dollar AI deals” to regain investor confidence.
Key Takeaway
Oracle’s stock may have lost its shine since September, but the story behind it hasn’t changed much. The AI pipeline is still expanding, margins have room to recover, and sentiment could shift quickly if December’s earnings beat expectations.
So perhaps Oracle stock’s pain could just be temporary, and the rebound could be sharp.
Is Oracle Stock a Good Buy?
Wall Street is still leaning bullish on Oracle. Of the 37 analysts who’ve issued ratings over the past three months, 25 call the stock a Buy, 11 rate it a Hold, and just one recommends a Sell. This puts Oracle in the “Moderate Buy” camp as investors weigh the recent slide against the company’s long runway in AI infrastructure.
The 12-month outlook is even more upbeat. Analysts see Oracle shares reaching an average price target of $354.13, implying about 56% upside from the current price.
