Oracle shares surged 40% on Wednesday after reporting exceptional cloud demand, putting the company on track for its best trading day since 1992. The cloud giant is rapidly approaching the $1 trillion market capitalization mark, currently valued at $950 billion.
Record backlog and cloud momentum
Oracle reported $455 billion in remaining performance obligations (RPO), up 359% from a year ago, far exceeding Wall Street expectations of $180 billion. Analysts described the figure as “astounding” and “historic,” highlighting the company’s dominant position in cloud and AI infrastructure.
AI boom fuels Oracle’s growth
Oracle has been a major beneficiary of the artificial intelligence surge, leveraging its cloud infrastructure and access to Nvidia GPUs to support large-scale AI workloads. The company faces strong competition from Microsoft, Amazon, and Google, but its cloud business continues to attract significant client demand.
Oracle forecasts cloud infrastructure revenue to reach $18 billion in fiscal 2026, with projections rising to $32 billion, $73 billion, $114 billion, and $144 billion over the following four years. Analysts from Deutsche Bank, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo praised the results, describing them as “truly awesome,” “momentous,” and cementing Oracle as a “key AI enabler.” Deutsche Bank raised its price target from $240 to $335 while maintaining a buy rating.
Founder’s net worth surges
Oracle founder Larry Ellison is set to gain approximately $100 billion, briefly surpassing Tesla CEO Elon Musk as the world’s richest person, according to Bloomberg.
Earnings highlights
The company’s cloud revenue projections overshadowed a modest first-quarter performance, where Oracle reported adjusted earnings of $1.47 per share, slightly below the $1.48 expected, and revenue of $14.93 billion versus the $15.04 billion forecast. Despite missing top- and bottom-line expectations, analysts remain confident in Oracle’s long-term growth trajectory driven by AI and cloud infrastructure.
