With the first full trading week of 2026 now in the books, investors might be wondering if the strong early start in the S&P will precede even more strength. Undoubtedly, a lack of a Santa Claus rally has seemingly paved the way for a rather hot start to 2026, with some memory chip stocks really picking up momentum while certain semiconductor equipment makers made up for lost time.
The markets are looking to clinch a winning week as they eye the final stretch of 2025. As things stand, all three of the major stock market averages are little changed while the CBOE volatility index is up approximately 4.7% on the day. With the exception of Nvidia ( Nasdaq: NVDA), which is tacking on almost 2% on a new deal development, Big Tech stocks are aimless. The Nasdaq Composite is looking at a 22.1% gain for the year.
After dipping below its 50-day moving average, shares of Nvidia ( NASDAQ: NVDA) are just starting to regain some lost momentum. Up about $2 in premarket, it's oversold at triple bottom support dating back to September. From its last traded price of $174.14, we'd like to see NVDA initially retest $200. Not only is Nvidia still riding Micron's earnings and guidance, but it's also still riding a Barclays upgrade to a buy rating thanks to the likelihood of further AI spending. "We are OW as the company has long-term sustainable growth led by a large lead in GPUs for AI in DC, with further Edge opportunities (autos, robots, etc.) and a competitive moat around a large portion of the market," said the firm, as quoted by CNBC.
The Dow is down about 45 points, as the Nasdaq tacks on another 26 points. After yesterday's Micron-induced tech rally, Oracle ( NYSE: ORCL) is giving markets a boost. All on news TikTok agreed to sell its U.S. operations to a new joint venture that includes the oversold tech giant and private equity investors at Silver Lake. Shares of Oracle are up about $8.50 in premarket on the news.
Yesterday, Oracle reported financial results for its second quarter of fiscal 2026. To say investors were disappointed in the results is an understatement, given how poorly ORCL shares are performing in premarket trading this morning. As of the time of this writing, ORCL shares are down over 12% as investors unpack its results: On the surface, the numbers look good. Non-GAAP earnings per share (EPS) were up 54% and total revenue was up 14%.
Shares in the company fell by 11.5% overnight after it reported a lower-than-expected 14% rise in revenues to $16bn (12bn) in the latest quarter while revealing it was boosting its AI spending by about $15bn. The business posted weaker-than-expected quarterly revenues for the three months to the end of November, as sales at its cloud computing business grew at a slower pace than forecast at 34%.
Oracle expects its FY 2026 capital expenditures will be $15 billion higher that previously predicted, as the cloudy database biz invests to accommodate AI workloads. Big Red's reason for the extra spending is growth in its Remaining Performance Obligations (RPO), services its clients have contracted to consume but haven't yet paid for. During the company's fiscal Q2 2026 earnings call, Doug Kehring, Oracle Principal Financial Officer, said, "Given the added RPO this quarter that can be monetized quickly starting next year, we now expect fiscal 2026 capex will be about fifteen billion higher than we forecasted after Q1."
But that doesn't mean you should pass up on a chance to make a big swing on the bigger opportunities that fly through your strike zone. In this piece, we'll look at three great large-cap tech stocks that have already fallen far more than the rest of the market and the Nasdaq 100 and might be spared if they have already "ripped the band-aid off," so to speak.
The bearish tilt in options discussions reflects real concerns that go beyond typical market gyrations: Oracle trades at a close to a 60 P/E ratio, leaving very little breathing room for any other than spectacular growth Quarterly earnings growth turned negative at -1.9% YoY, a jarring reversal among concerns about margin pressure The company faces intensifying competition in AI infrastructure from all comers. Everyone from Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) to OpenAI is building out their own massive infrastructure.
"The smartest people I know are investing fortunes, to be specific, they're investing their fortunes in building and training these AI models. That's how important [and] extraordinary they are," he said. "I think by and large we are going to live much better lives, healthier, longer lives, eat better food, live in better houses. It should be a much better world because these tools are so enormously powerful [although] some of the things they will do are a little bit shocking."
The question arises not just because Oracle recently announced that two executives are the company's new CEOs, succeeding Safra Catz, who had been CEO or co-CEO for the past 11 years. Making the succession more intriguing, Catz has been elevated to the board of directors with a previously unheard-of title, while founder Larry Ellison continues as chairman of the board and chief technology officer, but with duties that are by no means transparent.
Cloud infrastructure giant Oracle is looking to raise $15 billion through corporate bond sales, according to reporting from Bloomberg, citing sources. The sale could include up to seven different parts, with the potential for one said part to be an uncommon 40-year bond, Bloomberg reported. TechCrunch reached out to Oracle for more information. This report comes just a few weeks after Oracle reportedly signed a sizable deal with OpenAI to supply the AI research lab with $300 billion worth of compute.
Oracle has appointed two new co-CEOs, as part of a succession plan put into motion months ago. Business Insider reported in June that Oracle had promoted cloud boss Clay Magouyrk and head of industries Mike Sicilia to the title of "president" as part of a succession plan, citing SEC filings and people familiar with the plans. Safra Catz, CEO since 2014, will become executive vice chair of the company's board of directors, the company announced. Larry Ellison, cofounder and former CEO, will continue as chief technology officer and executive chairman.
Oracle is shaking up its executive suite as it sets its sights set on AI infrastructure dominance. The company announced Monday that it is promoting Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia to co-CEO roles. Magouyrk joined Oracle in 2014 from Amazon Web Services. He was a founding member of Oracle's cloud engineering team and has served as the president of Oracle's cloud infrastructure business unit for more than a decade.
