Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ:ORCL) is due to report tonight after the close. Consensus calls for $0.23 in earnings per share for the quarter ending Feb 28. Oracle has a unique fiscal year ending May 31. With that, Oracle sees momentum building for both the February and May quarters, and then tails off significantly for the August quarter.

Oracle is the worldwide leader in database software technology. It has a market share well north of 50%, and so far, the Oracle pricing structure has held up. It has near-obscene operating margins of 50%+ on the database business. While the database business has been the bread and butter for Oracle, the company has struggled with its applications software offerings.

Oracle has had a history of spotty, at best, research and development efforts for its applications business. The result has been Oracle's acquisitions of PeopleSoft and Seibel Systems with the idea being "if you cannot build it, buy it." Its acquired companies have been absorbed successfully and have provided the elusive growth Oracle has been lacking as the core database market has been growing under 10% per year.

On March 1, Oracle has announced its intentions to acquire Hyperion Solutions Corp. (NASDAQ:HYSL). Hyperion fills another research and development gap that Oracle has struggled with: business analytics. Business analytics should be a complimentary sale with database software.

Oracle will achieve its guided $0.23 per share tonight. Oracle would not announce a major acquisition like Hyperion, then have the audacity to blow the quarter.

Georges Yared is the author of Stop Losing Money Today and Baby Boomer Investing. Please visit www.georgesyared.com

When business applications software maker Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ:ORCL) announced last week its intention to purchase rival Hyperion Solutions (NASDAQ:HYSL), Oracle not only made a move to improve its position to challenge sector leader SAP (NYSE:SAP), it also continued its well-established strategy of expansion through acquisition.

Germany-based SAP did show weakness in its Q4 report back in January, and more recently has denied rumors that its founders are looking to sell their stake in SAP.

But the Oracle-Hyperion deal has prompted speculation about other mergers and acquisitions that may follow in its wake. These and other reservations about the deal were explored recently by Blogging Stocks contributors Georges Yared and Tom Taulli.

The question is, how will all this shake out when Oracle reports its Q3 earnings on March 20? According to Thomson Financial, the consensus revenue estimate is $4.3 billion, with earnings per share of 23 cents, as compared to actual $4.1 billion and EPS of 22 cents last quarter. The consensus rates ORCL a buy, with 12 strong buy recommendations, 10 buy, and 12 holds, from those analysts' surveyed. The price target is $19.59; ORCL opened Wednesday at $16.77. The 52-week high was $19.75 in late November, and the 52-week low of $12.72 about a year ago.

Can Oracle beat analysts' expectations, perhaps signaling a serious run at SAP, or will complications from its acquisitions strategy and other market factors cause it to fall short? How do things in the crystal ball look to you?

Oracle's (NASDAQ:ORCL) M&A machine has been quiet lately.

Well, that ended today. The company announced it will buy Hyperion Solutions (NASDAQ:HYSL) for $3.3 billion in cash. The offer price is $52 per share, which is a 21% premium.

Hyperion develops so-called business performance management software. That is, it helps businesses collect, analyze, and share data. Apparently, it's a business that's getting lots of traction.

Interestingly enough, in the press release, Oracle indicated that this deal is a way to put even more pressure on its arch rival, SAP (NYSE: SAP).

And, I think it will. After all, a good amount of Hyperion's customers are actually SAP customers.

Also, it looks like Oracle is getting a pretty good valuation – at about 2.4X revenues.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

Companies are always looking for an edge and they can usually find one by comparing the success rates of their various endeavors. Today's featured firm is an established provider of the business intelligence programs and development tools firms use to refine their focus.

Hyperion Solutions Corporation (NASDAQ:HYSL) provides business performance management software. Its program systems enable customers to collect, organize and analyze enterprise data in search of such useful indicators as sales trends, buying habits and budget swings. The results are used to understand customer relationships, create statutory reports, develop strategic plans and monitor performance against goals.

The firm pleased investors last week, when it reported fiscal Q2 EPS of 50 cents and revenues of $222.9 million. Analysts had been looking for 43 cents and $212 million. Management also guided Q3 EPS to 40-45 cents (42 cent consensus), Q3 revenues to $215-$220 million ($208.83M consensus), FY07 EPS to $1.80-$1.85 ($1.72 consensus) and FY07 revenues to $885-$895 million ($856.45M consensus). Shares popped through 30-day, 50-day and 90-day moving average resistance on the news and are now consolidating the gain in a bullish "flag" pattern. Equities frequently exit flags moving in the same direction they were traveling when they entered them. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Brokers recommend the issue with four "strong buys," six "buys," fourteen "holds" and three "sells." The HYSL Price to Sales ratio (2.88), Price to Book ratio (3.75), Price to Free Cash Flow ratio (15.05), Sales Growth rate (20.16%) and EPS Growth rate (35.14%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages.

The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 600 SmallCap Index. Institutional investors hold about 95% of the outstanding shares. Over the past fifty-two weeks, HYSL has traded between $26.65 and $41.95. A stop-loss of $35.80 looks good here.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com.