Since its upside surprise when it reported last quarter, enterprise software giant Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) has continued with its philosophy of growth through acquisition by acquiring LODESTAR Corp., which supplies software solutions to utilities, as well as product lifecycle management leader Agile Software Corp. (NASDAQ: AGIL). And the share price has been trending upward the past three months.

But it hasn't all been peaches and cream. Billionaire George Soros recently shifted his focus away from Oracle and some other tech stocks in favor of Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT). BloggingStocks contributor Georges Yared thinks Oracle's glory days, in terms of growth, may be behind it, and even that it may be a stock for suckers.

Oracle's rivalry with Germany-based SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) continues, of course, not only in the courtroom -- Oracle recently added copyright infringement to its theft charges against SAP -- but also into small and medium-sized companies, where some early indicators suggest Oracle may have the edge. Oddly enough, there has been speculation that Oracle may try to acquire SAP, unlikely though that may be, after it was rumored that Oracle has been purchasing SAP stock.

But Oracle remains part of the Fortune 500, and BloggingStocks contributor Brent Archer thinks the stock might be a bargain. One analyst upgraded Oracle just last week. According to Thomson Financial, Wall Street consensus rates ORCL a buy (12 strong buy, 11 buy, 12 hold). When Oracle reports earnings on June 26, analysts expect earnings per share for this quarter to come in at 35 cents, compared to 25 cents actual from last quarter, and 25 cents a year ago. Its market cap is $96.8 billion, and its P/E ratio is 18.95 (the industry average is 23.49). The consensus price target is $21.25; the 52-week low was $13.77 in July of 2006 and $19.95 last week. It closed Tuesday at $19.88.

Oracle Q4 2007 earnings preview: A bargain or a sucker's bet? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Jun 2007 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.