Shares in Oracle (ORCL) are sinking after the company reported its fiscal fourth quarter earning results. Q4 Non-GAAP EPS of $1.20 beat Street expectations by $0.05, as did GAAP EPS of $0.99 vs the $0.04 consensus. However, revenue of $10.44B missed by $240M, and represented a 6.3% year-over-year decline.
Meanwhile cloud services and license support generated revenue of $6.85B, slightly lower than the Street estimated $6.91B. Similarly, cloud license and on-premise license revenue came in at $1.96B falling short of the $2.17B estimate.
The board of directors also declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share of outstanding common stock.
“Our overall business did remarkably well considering the pandemic, but our results would have been even better except for customers in the hardest-hit industries that we serve such as hospitality, retail, and transportation postponing some of their purchases” commented Oracle CEO, Safra Catz.
Looking forward, guidance was positive, likely due to pushed-out deals, with F1Q total revenue expected to be (1%)–1% in USD, vs. consensus of (1.8%), and NG EPS of $0.84–0.88 vs. consensus of $0.85.
Following the report RBC Capital’s Alex Zukin wrote “Oracle continues its transition to a Cloud-centric world unevenly. Its traditional on-prem license business is shrinking, and Cloud growth is only strong enough to keep total revenue modestly expanding”
Citing better margins/ EPS, he raised his price target to $51 from $50 previously, and reiterated his hold rating. Management continues to talk to an acceleration, but the time frame is uncertain, he added. Zukin’s new price target still indicates downside potential of 7% lies ahead.
Shares are currently sinking 3% in Wednesday’s pre-market trading, with a 3% gain so far year-to-date. Analysts are split between hold and buy ratings, giving the stock a Moderate Buy consensus. Meanwhile the average analyst price target of $55 is flat with the current share price. (See ORCL stock analysis on TipRanks).
Related News:
Facebook Unveils Tighter Political Ad Measures Ahead of US Elections
Groupon Rises After-Hours Despite Revenue Plunging 35% Y/Y
Tesla Clinches Three-Year Pricing Deal With Panasonic For Battery Cells
