Oracle Option Alert: Mar 28 $150 Puts at the Bid: 4025 vs 102 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] 

Oracle Option Alert: Mar 28 $150 Puts at the Bid: 4025 @ $1.62 vs 102 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] Ref=$176.305

Oracle Option Alert: Fri $150 Calls Sweep (14) near the Ask: 187 vs 417 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] 

Oracle Option Alert: Fri $150 Calls Sweep (14) near the Ask: 187 @ $28.9 vs 417 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] Ref=$178.785

Oracle Option Alert: Jan, 2027 $240 Calls at the Bid: 300 vs 68 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] 

Oracle Option Alert: Jan, 2027 $240 Calls at the Bid: 300 @ $19.55 vs 68 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] Ref=$179.93

Oracle Option Alert: Jun 20 $200 Calls at the Bid: 1500 vs 3975 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] 

Oracle Option Alert: Jun 20 $200 Calls at the Bid: 1500 @ $9.71 vs 3975 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] Ref=$181.2945

Oracle Option Alert: Jun, 2026 $180 Calls at the Ask: 250 vs 109 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] 

Oracle Option Alert: Jun, 2026 $180 Calls at the Ask: 250 @ $29.15 vs 109 OI; Earnings 3/10 After Close [est] Ref=$173.12

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) Stock

Oracle

Oracle Corporation

NASDAQ

Oracle provides enterprise applications and infrastructure offerings around the world through a variety of flexible IT deployment models, including on-premises, cloud-based, and hybrid. Founded in 1977, Oracle pioneered the first commercial SQL-based relational database management system, which is commonly used for running online transaction processing and data warehousing workloads. Besides database systems, Oracle also sells enterprise resource planning, or ERP, customer relationship management, or CRM, and human capital management, or HCM, applications. Today, Oracle has more than 159,000 full-time employees in over 170 countries.

Rio,De,Janeiro,,April,22th,,2015-,Mega,Investor,George,Soros.

Long Ideas

Hedge Funds

Trading Ideas

BABA

ALIBABA GROUP HOLDING LTD by Alibaba Group Holding Limited

BABAF

GOOGL

ORCL

iShares Trust Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond Fund

Soros Fund Management made bullish bets on Alphabet and small-cap stocks while reducing exposure to SPY and Chinese tech in Q4. 

George Soros Makes Fresh Bets On Alphabet, Small Caps: What About SPY Puts And Alibaba?

What Happened

News

Larry Ellison Says The US and Other Countries &#39;Need To Unify All Of The National Data Into A Database&#39; That Can Be Fed To AI

AMZN

MSFT

NVDA


Analysts say NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) is a buy ahead of earnings because the results will be robust, high-double-digit growth is likely, and the guidance will also be sound. The long-term outlook is also robust because the

Analysts See Buying Opportunity in NVIDIA Before Earnings

Oracle Corp

WIIM

ADBE

AMOD

APPS

ASAN

BILL

BLIN

BTDR

CDNS

CFLT

CIFR

CLSK

Core Scientific, Inc. - Class A Common Stock

CORZ

CVLT

CYBR

DDOG

ESTC

FTNT

GTLB

HUBS

INTU

IREN

KVYO

MARA

MSTR

NTNX

PANW

PATH

PLTR

RBRK

RIOT

SAIL

SNPS

SOUN

TEAM

ZETA

Shares of software companies are trading lower amid overall market weakness on US consumer and economic concerns.

Oracle's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>) short percent of float has risen 31.75% since its last report. The company recently reported that it has 27.22 million shares sold short, which is 1.66% of all regular shares that are available for trading. Based on its trading volume, it would take traders 1.33 days to cover their short positions on average.
<h3>Why Short Interest Matters</h3>
Short interest is the number of shares that have been sold short but have not yet been covered or closed out. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-short-a-stock?adType=benzinga-insights&amp;ad=short-interest&amp;campaign=wallstreetadvantage">Short selling</a> is when a trader sells shares of a company they do not own, with the hope that the price will fall. Traders make money from short selling if the price of the stock falls and they lose if it rises.
Short interest is important to track because it can act as an indicator of market sentiment towards a particular stock. An increase in short interest can signal that investors have become more bearish, while a decrease in short interest can signal they have become more bullish.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/short-interest?adType=benzinga-insights&amp;ad=short-interest&amp;campaign=wallstreetadvantage">List of the most shorted stocks</a>
<h3>Oracle Short Interest Graph (3 Months)</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2025/1740169822_0.png" alt="short_fig" />
As you can see from the chart above the percentage of shares that are sold short for Oracle has grown since its last report. This does not mean that the stock is going to fall in the near-term but traders should be aware that more shares are being shorted.
<h3>Comparing Oracle's Short Interest Against Its Peers</h3>
Peer comparison is a popular technique amongst analysts and investors for gauging how well a company is performing. A company's peer is another company that has similar characteristics to it, such as industry, size, age, and financial structure. You can find a company's peer group by reading its 10-K, proxy filing, or by doing your own similarity analysis.
According to <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/pro/">Benzinga Pro</a>, Oracle's peer group average for short interest as a percentage of float is 5.36%, which means the company has less short interest than most of its peers.
Did you know that increasing short interest can actually be bullish for a stock? <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/how-to-make-money-on-a-short-squeeze?adType=benzinga-insights&amp;ad=short-interest&amp;campaign=wallstreetadvantage">This post by Benzinga Money explains how you can profit from it.</a>
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and was reviewed by an editor.

Short Sellers

Short Ideas

What Does the Market Think About Oracle?

<a href="https://x.com/Benioff/status/1892611682700009614" title="https://x.com/Benioff/status/1892611682700009614">https://x.com/Benioff/status/1892611682700009614</a>

Tech

Salesforce CEO Benioff: 'The story in @TheInformation
 is incorrect. In 2024, Salesforce explored a fourth deployment option for our customers, alongside our existing choices: our proprietary data centers, AWS, and Alibaba. Last year, we decided to extend our partnership with Google, giving customers the option to deploy Salesforce's customers 360 apps, Hyperforce, Agentforce, and Data Cloud on Google's platform in future Salesforce releases.'

<a href="https://www.theinformation.com/articles/salesforce-in-talks-with-microsoft-oracle-and-google-about-cloud-deal-to-handle-ai" title="https://www.theinformation.com/articles/salesforce-in-talks-with-microsoft-oracle-and-google-about-cloud-deal-to-handle-ai">https://www.theinformation.com/articles/salesforce-in-talks-with-microsoft-oracle-and-google-about-cloud-deal-to-handle-ai</a>

GOOG

'Salesforce In Talks With Microsoft, Oracle And Google About Cloud Deal To Handle AI' - The Information

<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/george-soros">Billionaire investor George Soros</a> made some bold portfolio adjustments in the fourth quarter, signaling a shift toward growth while easing off defensive bets. 
Soros Fund Management's latest 13F filing shows fresh bets on Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GOOGL#NASDAQ">GOOGL</a>) and small-cap stocks, alongside a significant reduction in its SPDR S&amp;P 500 ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SPY#NYSE">SPY</a>) put position.
Meanwhile, the fund trimmed its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/BABA#NYSE">BABA</a>) (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/BABAF#NYSE">BABAF</a>) and fully exited Oracle Corp (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>), reflecting a shifting stance on Chinese tech.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Doubling Down On Alphabet, Small Caps</h2>
Alphabet emerged as one of Soros' biggest buys, with the fund increasing its stake by 2.55%. 
The firm also ramped up its exposure to the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/IWM#NYSE">IWM</a>), a play on smaller, high-growth companies. 
This move suggests Soros is betting on a continued rebound in both mega-cap tech and smaller, more volatile stocks.
Read Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/25/02/43816112/hedge-fund-shake-up-tiger-appaloosa-soros-outperform-buffett-icahn-ackman">Hedge Fund Shake-Up: Tiger, Appaloosa, Soros Outperform Buffett, Icahn, Ackman</a>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cutting Market Hedges, Adding Fixed Income</h2>
Soros Fund slashed its SPY put position by nearly 15%, signaling reduced bearish sentiment on the broader market. &#8216;
The fund also trimmed holdings in The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/XLF#NYSE">XLF</a>) and iShares Core S&amp;P 500 ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/IVV#NYSE">IVV</a>), while increasing exposure to Ford Motor Co&#8216;s (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/F#NYSE">F</a>) debt and the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TLT#NASDAQ">TLT</a>) calls — moves that hint at an evolving fixed-income strategy.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">China Exposure Shrinks As BABA Gets Trimmed</h2>
Alibaba stock took a hit in the fourth quarter as Soros scaled back his position, joining other investors in reassessing Chinese tech. 
Meanwhile, Smurfit WestRock PLC (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SW#NYSE">SW</a>) remained the fund's top holding at 5.71% of the portfolio, with Alphabet and AstraZeneca PLC (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AZN#NASDAQ">AZN</a>) rounding out the top three.
Soros' latest moves suggest a more optimistic take on U.S. growth stocks while pulling back on market hedges and Chinese tech bets.
Read Next: 
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<li><a href="https://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/25/02/43811538/5-top-tech-stocks-hedge-funds-have-been-bullish-on-in-q4-hint-its-not-nvidia">5 Top Tech Stocks Hedge Funds Have Been Bullish On In Q4 (Hint: It&#8217;s Not Nvidia)</a></li>
</ul>
Image: Shutterstock

Larry Ellison, the billionaire co-founder of Oracle (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>), believes the U.S. and other countries should unify all their national data into a single database that AI can analyze. Speaking at the World Governments Summit in Dubai last week with former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, Ellison said that AI could work better if all government data was in one place. Right now, it&#8217;s too scattered, making it hard for AI to help improve public services, save money, and stop fraud.
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">A Unified Database for AI</h2>
Ellison pointed out that government agencies collect massive amounts of information but store it in thousands of separate databases, making it difficult to utilize. "It's not like ‘Go to this database and here's all the data about my country,'" he said. "It's ‘Go to these 3,000 databases and here's all the data about my country.'" His solution? Consolidate everything into one easily accessible system that AI can process to answer any question governments may have.
<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"> 
<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">CEO of Oracle, Larry Ellison, says countries need to "unify" all their data so it can be accessed and consumed by AI models. Ellison says this includes health data and genomic data, which he also states can be used to develop genetically personalized vaxxes for consumers. <a href="https://t.co/JuaRKIxu2L">pic.twitter.com/JuaRKIxu2L</a>
&mdash; Max Jones (@maxyyjones) <a href="https://twitter.com/maxyyjones/status/1891241776050020673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
</figure>
Ellison thinks AI could make healthcare better by putting all medical records, test results, and even DNA information in one place. He believes this would help doctors find illnesses earlier and create better treatments. &#8220;That's the big step. That's kind of the missing link. We need to unify all of the national data, put it into a database where it's easily consumable by the AI model and then ask whatever question you like," he explained.
Trending: Many don&#8217;t know there are tax benefits when buying a unit as an investment —<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/casa-shares"> Here&#8217;s how to invest in real estate by mirroring BlackRock's big move</a>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Oracle's Role and the Rise of AI Super Centers</h2>
Ellison, whose company has <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/24/06/39317779/oracles-strategic-pivot-to-ai-and-cloud-computing-yields-market-cap-surge-report">heavily invested</a> in AI and cloud computing, made it evident that Oracle is ready to help governments implement this vision. The company is already a major contractor for the U.S. government and military, and Ellison revealed plans for a $100 billion data center that would train advanced AI models. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/01/43126103/oracles-ai-moonshot-why-project-stargate-could-propel-orcl-stock-higher">Oracle is also part</a> of the Stargate project, a massive $500 billion initiative to expand AI infrastructure in the U.S.
However, he emphasized that governments should build their own data centers domestically due to privacy concerns. &#8220;Just like airports obviously need to be in our country or they're not terribly useful, ports need to be in our country or they're not terribly useful, data centers—because of the privacy requirements around the data—need to be in our countries or they're not terribly useful," he said.
See Also: If there was a new fund backed by Jeff Bezos offering a <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/arrived-private-credit-fund">7-9% target yield with monthly dividends would you invest in it</a>?
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Surveillance Factor</h2>
Ellison's push for data centralization is not just about improving services—it also aligns with his belief in constant surveillance. At Oracle's Financial Analyst Meeting last year, he <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/24/09/40892284/oracles-larry-ellison-predicts-police-officers-will-be-supervised-at-all-times-and-citizens-will-be">openly supported the idea</a>, stating, &#8220;Citizens will be on their best behavior, because we're constantly recording and reporting everything that is going on." He envisions a world where both civilians and law enforcement are under 24/7 AI-powered monitoring, with AI identifying any misconduct.
This perspective has sparked comparisons to China's social credit system, where mass surveillance and AI-driven analysis help control public behavior. Critics warn that such a system could have serious privacy implications, especially given the frequent <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/tech/25/02/43759346/massive-data-breach-exposes-americans-financial-details-names-card-numbers-pins-and-more-at-risk">cyberattacks on U.S. government databases</a>. Just last year, U.S. intelligence officials reported that Chinese hackers had <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/global/24/12/42734671/china-linked-hackers-breach-us-department-of-treasury">breached the Treasury Department</a>.
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Larry Ellison Says The US and Other Countries 'Need To Unify All Of The National Data Into A Database' That Can Be Fed To AI

This whale alert can help traders discover the next big trading opportunities.
Whales are entities with large sums of money and we track their transactions here at Benzinga on our options activity scanner.
Traders will search for circumstances when the market estimation of an option diverges heavily from its normal worth. High amounts of trading activity could push option prices to exaggerated or underestimated levels. 
Here's the list of options activity happening in today's session: 
<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th>Symbol</th>
<th>PUT/CALL</th>
<th>Trade Type</th>
<th>Sentiment</th>
<th>Exp. Date</th>
<th>Strike Price</th>
<th>Total Trade Price</th>
<th>Open Interest</th>
<th>Volume</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>NVDA</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>TRADE</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>03/21/25</td>
<td>$150.00</td>
<td>$29.4K</td>
<td>123.2K</td>
<td>8.9K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>PLTR</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BEARISH</td>
<td>03/21/25</td>
<td>$120.00</td>
<td>$28.0K</td>
<td>20.2K</td>
<td>6.7K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ZETA</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BEARISH</td>
<td>02/28/25</td>
<td>$30.00</td>
<td>$39.7K</td>
<td>541</td>
<td>3.2K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ANET</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BEARISH</td>
<td>02/21/25</td>
<td>$110.00</td>
<td>$44.3K</td>
<td>2.9K</td>
<td>3.0K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ORCL</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BEARISH</td>
<td>02/28/25</td>
<td>$190.00</td>
<td>$67.0K</td>
<td>1.2K</td>
<td>2.4K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>AVGO</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>01/16/26</td>
<td>$170.00</td>
<td>$166.4K</td>
<td>11.6K</td>
<td>2.1K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>FTNT</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>01/15/27</td>
<td>$100.00</td>
<td>$168.7K</td>
<td>3.1K</td>
<td>2.1K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>WDC</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BEARISH</td>
<td>04/17/25</td>
<td>$75.00</td>
<td>$33.0K</td>
<td>13.2K</td>
<td>2.0K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>AMD</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>06/20/25</td>
<td>$130.00</td>
<td>$29.4K</td>
<td>5.6K</td>
<td>1.6K</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>DELL</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>TRADE</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>04/17/25</td>
<td>$155.00</td>
<td>$194.5K</td>
<td>346</td>
<td>1.4K</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

<h2>Explanation</h2>
These itemized elaborations have been created using the accompanying table. 
• Regarding NVDA (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NVDA#NASDAQ">NVDA</a>), we observe a call option trade with bullish sentiment. It expires in 31 day(s) on March 21, 2025. Parties traded 50 contract(s) at a $150.00 strike. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $29.4K, with a price of $588.0 per contract. There were 123284 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 8983 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• For PLTR (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PLTR#NASDAQ">PLTR</a>), we notice a call option sweep that happens to be bearish, expiring in 31 day(s) on March 21, 2025. This event was a transfer of 28 contract(s) at a $120.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 5 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $28.0K, with a price of $1001.0 per contract. There were 20299 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 6726 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• For ZETA (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ZETA#NYSE">ZETA</a>), we notice a call option sweep that happens to be bearish, expiring in 10 day(s) on February 28, 2025. This event was a transfer of 284 contract(s) at a $30.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 31 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $39.7K, with a price of $140.0 per contract. There were 541 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 3240 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• For ANET (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ANET#NYSE">ANET</a>), we notice a call option sweep that happens to be bearish, expiring in 3 day(s) on February 21, 2025. This event was a transfer of 78 contract(s) at a $110.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 5 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $44.3K, with a price of $568.0 per contract. There were 2943 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 3034 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• Regarding ORCL (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>), we observe a call option sweep with bearish sentiment. It expires in 10 day(s) on February 28, 2025. Parties traded 500 contract(s) at a $190.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 5 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $67.0K, with a price of $134.0 per contract. There were 1298 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 2421 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• For AVGO (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AVGO#NASDAQ">AVGO</a>), we notice a call option sweep that happens to be bullish, expiring in 332 day(s) on January 16, 2026. This event was a transfer of 23 contract(s) at a $170.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 11 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $166.4K, with a price of $7235.0 per contract. There were 11611 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 2112 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• For FTNT (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/FTNT#NASDAQ">FTNT</a>), we notice a call option sweep that happens to be bullish, expiring in 696 day(s) on January 15, 2027. This event was a transfer of 45 contract(s) at a $100.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 19 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $168.7K, with a price of $3750.0 per contract. There were 3155 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 2110 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• For WDC (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/WDC#NASDAQ">WDC</a>), we notice a call option sweep that happens to be bearish, expiring in 58 day(s) on April 17, 2025. This event was a transfer of 110 contract(s) at a $75.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 15 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $33.0K, with a price of $300.0 per contract. There were 13251 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 2005 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• For AMD (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AMD#NASDAQ">AMD</a>), we notice a call option sweep that happens to be bullish, expiring in 122 day(s) on June 20, 2025. This event was a transfer of 50 contract(s) at a $130.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 8 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $29.4K, with a price of $590.0 per contract. There were 5635 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 1619 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
• Regarding DELL (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/DELL#NYSE">DELL</a>), we observe a call option trade with bullish sentiment. It expires in 58 day(s) on April 17, 2025. Parties traded 1400 contract(s) at a $155.00 strike. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $194.5K, with a price of $139.0 per contract. There were 346 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 1407 contract(s) were bought and sold. 
Options Alert Terminology 
 - Call Contracts: The right to buy shares as indicated in the contract. 
 - Put Contracts: The right to sell shares as indicated in the contract. 
 - Expiration Date: When the contract expires. One must act on the contract by this date if one wants to use it. 
 - Premium/Option Price: The price of the contract. 
For more information, visit our <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/blog/how-to-understand-option-alerts/">Guide to Understanding Options Alerts</a> or read <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/options">more about unusual options activity</a>. 
This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and reviewed by an editor.

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10 Information Technology Stocks With Whale Alerts In Today's Session

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bearish stance on Oracle (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>).
And retail traders should know.
We noticed this today when the trades showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.
Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with ORCL, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.
So how do we know what these investors just did? 
Today, <a href="https://pro.benzinga.com/?utm_source=insights">Benzinga</a>'s options scanner spotted 18 uncommon options trades for Oracle.
This isn't normal.
The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 38% bullish and 50%, bearish.
Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 5 are puts, for a total amount of $235,529, and 13 are calls, for a total amount of $720,593.
<h3>What's The Price Target?</h3>
After evaluating the trading volumes and Open Interest, it's evident that the major market movers are focusing on a price band between $100.0 and $200.0 for Oracle, spanning the last three months.
<h3>Insights into Volume &amp; Open Interest</h3>
Looking at the volume and open interest is an insightful way to conduct due diligence on a stock.
This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for Oracle's options for a given strike price.
Below, we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts, respectively, for all of Oracle's whale activity within a strike price range from $100.0 to $200.0 in the last 30 days. 
<h3>Oracle Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days</h3>
<img src="https://www.benzinga.com/files/images/story/2025/1739892637_0_0.png" alt="Options Call Chart" />
<h3>Noteworthy Options Activity:</h3>

<table>
<thead>
<tr>
<th>Symbol</th>
<th>PUT/CALL</th>
<th>Trade Type</th>
<th>Sentiment</th>
<th>Exp. Date</th>
<th>Ask</th>
<th>Bid</th>
<th>Price</th>
<th>Strike Price</th>
<th>Total Trade Price</th>
<th>Open Interest</th>
<th align="right">Volume</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>ORCL</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>TRADE</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>06/20/25</td>
<td>$18.0</td>
<td>$17.25</td>
<td>$17.7</td>
<td>$175.00</td>
<td>$182.3K</td>
<td>1.7K</td>
<td align="right">108</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ORCL</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>03/21/25</td>
<td>$11.05</td>
<td>$11.05</td>
<td>$11.05</td>
<td>$175.00</td>
<td>$110.9K</td>
<td>10.3K</td>
<td align="right">38</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ORCL</td>
<td>PUT</td>
<td>TRADE</td>
<td>BEARISH</td>
<td>08/15/25</td>
<td>$4.2</td>
<td>$4.1</td>
<td>$4.2</td>
<td>$145.00</td>
<td>$108.7K</td>
<td>403</td>
<td align="right">1</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ORCL</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>04/17/25</td>
<td>$77.4</td>
<td>$75.5</td>
<td>$77.4</td>
<td>$100.00</td>
<td>$77.4K</td>
<td>18</td>
<td align="right">0</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>ORCL</td>
<td>CALL</td>
<td>SWEEP</td>
<td>BULLISH</td>
<td>01/15/27</td>
<td>$47.5</td>
<td>$46.7</td>
<td>$46.7</td>
<td>$160.00</td>
<td>$46.7K</td>
<td>177</td>
<td align="right">10</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

<h3>About Oracle</h3>
Oracle provides database technology and enterprise resource planning, or ERP, software to enterprises around the world. Founded in 1977, Oracle pioneered the first commercial SQL-based relational database management system. Today, Oracle has more than 400,000 customers in 175 countries.
<h3>Present Market Standing of Oracle</h3>
<ul>
<li>Currently trading with a volume of 1,903,871, the ORCL's price is up by 2.13%, now at $177.88. </li>
<li>RSI readings suggest the stock is currently may be approaching overbought.</li>
<li>Anticipated earnings release is in 20 days.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What The Experts Say On Oracle</h3>
A total of 1 professional analysts have given their take on this stock in the last 30 days, setting an average price target of $205.0.
Unusual Options Activity Detected: Smart Money on the Move
Benzinga Edge's Unusual Options board spots potential market movers before they happen. See what positions big money is taking on your favorite stocks. <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/premium/ideas/benzinga-edge-checkout/?t=Be8be9arja3be22bz20&amp;utm_source=benzinga-insights">Click here for access</a>. 
&#x2A; An analyst from JMP Securities has revised its rating downward to Market Outperform, adjusting the price target to $205. 
Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock, but they have higher profit potential. Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily, scaling in and out of trades, following more than one indicator, and following the markets closely.
If you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Oracle, <a href="https://benzinga.grsm.io/register174">Benzinga Pro</a> gives you real-time options trades alerts.

Markets

Check Out What Whales Are Doing With ORCL

In a recent shift of investment strategy,&nbsp;David Tepper&#8216;s hedge fund,&nbsp;Appaloosa LP, has made significant alterations to its portfolio. 
What Happened: The firm&#8217;s latest 13F filing reveals a reduction in semiconductor holdings, while stakes in other tech stocks, including&nbsp;Oracle Corp. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>) and the&nbsp;ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK), have been increased.
Appaloosa LP, during&nbsp;the fourth quarter of 2023,&nbsp;purchased&nbsp;1.3 million shares in Oracle&nbsp;Corp worth approximately&nbsp;$140 million and a call&nbsp;option for nearly&nbsp;2.6 million shares of the&nbsp;ARK Innovation ETF valued at over $133 million. The hedge fund also established&nbsp;new positions in FMC Corp.&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/FMC#NYSE">FMC</a>) and General Motors Co.&nbsp;(NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GM#NYSE">GM</a>).
Investments were also made&nbsp;in the home improvement, construction,&nbsp;and building materials sectors, with the acquisition of shares in firms such as Masco Corp. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MAS#NYSE">MAS</a>), Mohawk Industries Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MHK#NYSE">MHK</a>), and Owens Corning (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/OC#NYSE">OC</a>).
According to a report <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/tepper-appaloosa-13f-q4-2023-8580346">by </a>Investopedia, Appaloosa reduced its positions in&nbsp;several tech firms, including Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AMD#NASDAQ">AMD</a>),&nbsp;Alphabet Class C stock (GOOG),&nbsp;Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/QCOM#NASDAQ">QCOM</a>), Uber Technologies (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/UBER#NYSE">UBER</a>), and&nbsp;Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TSM#NYSE">TSM</a>).&nbsp;The largest sell-off involved&nbsp;nearly 1.7 million shares of&nbsp;Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/INTC#NASDAQ">INTC</a>).
Also Read: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/25/02/43746268/david-tepper-rausing-family-boost-nvidia-holdings-ahead-of-stock-volatility">David Tepper, Rausing Family Boost Nvidia Holdings Ahead Of Stock Volatility</a>
Outside of tech, the fund sold off shares in KE Holdings Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/BEKE#NYSE">BEKE</a>), Macy&#8217;s Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/M#NYSE">M</a>), and PDD Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PDD#NASDAQ">PDD</a>). On the flip side, Appaloosa added to its existing positions in Caesars Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/CZR#NASDAQ">CZR</a>), MPLX LP (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MPLX#NYSE">MPLX</a>), Alibaba Group Holding (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/BABA#NYSE">BABA</a>), Amazon (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AMZN#NASDAQ">AMZN</a>), and Microsoft (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MSFT#NASDAQ">MSFT</a>).
The hedge fund also&nbsp;exited two positions entirely in&nbsp;the fourth quarter, selling off&nbsp;shares of Arista Networks (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ANET#NYSE">ANET</a>)&nbsp;and Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/EPD#NYSE">EPD</a>).
Why It Matters: Appaloosa&#8217;s portfolio reshuffle indicates a strategic shift towards diversification. The reduction in semiconductor holdings comes amidst a global chip shortage, potentially signaling a cautious approach. 
The increased stakes in other tech stocks and the home improvement sector suggest a focus on industries that have shown resilience during the pandemic. The fund&#8217;s&nbsp;new positions in FMC Corp.&nbsp;and General Motors Co. indicate a bet on the agrochemical and automotive industries, respectively. 
The sell-offs, on the other hand, might reflect an attempt to mitigate risks associated with specific stocks or sectors.
Read Next:
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Image: Shutterstock

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Website listings and data company <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/real-estate/24/12/42462666/plan-and-budget-for-the-mid-6-range-what-homebuyers-can-expect-in-2025-according-to-realtor-com">Realtor.com</a> is the latest high-profile Californian-based company to relocate to Texas. In moving from Santa Clara to <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/02/43620349/tesla-still-on-track-to-launch-autonomous-ride-hailing-in-austin-by-june-says-elon-musk">Austin</a>, alarm bells sounded in Silicon Valley as it lost another high-profile tech business to the Lone Star state.
&#8220;With the move, the company has made Austin its top hiring location and has committed to the long-term growth of its team and office footprint in Texas,&#8221; Realtor.com <a href="https://cw-gbl-gws-prod.azureedge.net/-/media/cw/marketbeat-pdfs/2024/q4/us-reports/office/austin_americas_marketbeat_office_q42024.pdf?rev=f81f4e5596c0434ea30b73c9c4a80aa6">announced</a> on Feb. 6, adding that the area&#8217;s affordable cost of living, &#8220;aspirational lifestyle,&#8221; and &#8220;expansive tech and academic communities&#8221; make it an ideal home base.
Realtor.com is a unit of News Corp (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NWS#NASDAQ">NWS</a>, NWSA)).
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Affordability And Lifestyle</h2>
In conjunction with the move, and in a blow to Californian prestige, Realtor.com said: &#8220;Austin and Texas offer a strong and growing talent pool, a powerhouse economy with unparalleled housing growth, affordability of living only matched by its aspirational lifestyle, expansive tech, and academic communities, and a dynamic and vibrant city at the heart of the thriving state of Texas. There is no better place for us to call home.&#8221;
It continued: &#8220;Over the coming years, we are committed to growing our presence by hiring great local talent and by bringing new recruits to Texas. Basing Realtor.com in Texas puts our company at the heart of innovation and inspiration at a moment of national economic renaissance for America. We are proud to be housed in a state which understands the crucial role played by business in providing opportunities for personal growth, professional success and community achievement. Our investment in Austin is a downpayment on The American Dream.&#8221;
Trending: Deloitte's fastest-growing software company partners with Amazon, Walmart &amp; Target – <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/mode-mobile-y2">Last Chance to get 4,000 of its pre-IPO shares for just $0.26/share!</a>
Realtor.com's announcement<a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/chevron-to-leave-california-for-texas-as-regulations-mount-in-golden-state-d58e170c"> </a>echoed oil major Chevron's (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/CVX#NYSE">CVX</a>) last year that it would move to Texas from California. The company is now based in Dallas.
&#8220;We believe California has a number of policies that raise costs, that hurt consumers, that discourage investment, and ultimately, we think that&#8217;s not good for the economy in California and for consumers,&#8221; Chevron CEO Mike Wirth <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/energy-oil/chevron-to-leave-california-for-texas-as-regulations-mount-in-golden-state-d58e170c">told The Wall Street Journal</a> in August.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">A Deluge Of Companies Leaving California For Texas</h2>
<a href="http://realtor.com/">Realtor.com</a> joins a deluge of companies that have traded the Golden State for the Lone Star State. These include Chevron, SpaceX, X, Tesla (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TSLA#NASDAQ">TSLA</a>) , and <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/insights/options/25/02/43597329/unpacking-the-latest-options-trading-trends-in-charles-schwab">Charles Schwab</a> (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SCHW#NASDAQ">SCHW</a>).&nbsp;
Recently, Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/META#NASDAQ">META</a>) CEO Mark Zuckerberg moved trust and safety workers to Texas and is reportedly exploring <a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/meta-incorporation-texas-delware-f06e8bab">moving the social-media giant&#8217;s legal residence</a> to the state. Smaller but high-profile companies, such as TV chef<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gordon-ramsay-moves-restaurant-hq-california-texas-2021-12"> Gordon Ramsay&#8217;s restaurant business</a> also made headlines by moving to Texas from California.
See Also: Wondering if your investments can get you to a $5,000,000 nest egg? Speak to a financial advisor today.<a href="https://smartasset.com/retirement/find-a-financial-planner?utm_source=benzinga&amp;utm_campaign=ben&amp;utm_content=y2_5MilNestEgg"> SmartAsset&#8217;s free tool matches you up with up to three vetted financial advisors who serve your area, and you can interview your advisor matches at no cost</a> to decide which one is right for you.
<a href="https://www.concordia.edu/blog/19-corporations-and-businesses-fleeing-california-for-texas.html">Other large companies</a>, including CBRE Group (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/CBRE#NYSE">CBRE</a>), Green Dot (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GDOT#NYSE">GDOT</a>), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/HPE#NYSE">HPE</a>), Oracle (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>), and Pabst Brewing Company, have moved to Texas in recent years, according to Concordia University.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Population Surge</h2>
Aside from differing politics, many companies cite the cost of living, affordable land, and lack of state income taxes as drivers for the move. Texas&#8217;s population increased by 1.6% in the year to July 2022, <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/why-americans-are-fleeing-democratic-states-1795292">Newsweek reported</a>, citing Census Bureau data. Over the same period, California decreased by 0.3% and New York by 0.9%.&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-02-06/realtor-com-leaves-california-to-set-up-headquarters-in-texas">Bloomberg reported</a> that Realtor.com has around 60,000 square feet in its Austin headquarters, and some workers who used to be based out of Santa Clara have been instructed to work remotely. However, according to commercial real estate brokerage <a href="https://cw-gbl-gws-prod.azureedge.net/-/media/cw/marketbeat-pdfs/2024/q4/us-reports/office/austin_americas_marketbeat_office_q42024.pdf?rev=f81f4e5596c0434ea30b73c9c4a80aa6">Cushman &amp;&nbsp; Wakefield</a>, Austin&#8217;s construction boom has resulted in office vacancies of nearly 30%.
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TikTok, the Chinese short video platform, has reappeared on the&nbsp;Apple&nbsp;and&nbsp;Google&nbsp;app stores following a month-long hiatus.
What Happened: TikTok officially announced that the app was restored to the app stores of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AAPL#NASDAQ">AAPL</a>) and Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GOOGL#NASDAQ">GOOGL</a>) (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GOOG#NASDAQ">GOOG</a>) on Thursday evening. The app was taken down on Jan 18, in response to TikTok&#8217;s decision to temporarily halt its services in the U.S. due to a new national security law.
The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, signed by former President Joe Biden in April, mandated that China-based ByteDance sell its U.S. TikTok operations by Jan 19 or risk a ban. The law also warned about strict penalties on internet service providers such as Apple, Google, and Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NASDAQ">ORCL</a>).
TikTok shut down its U.S. operations, arguing that the law infringed on the First Amendment rights of its 170 million American users. In January, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Biden administration, asserting that divestiture was required due to national security concerns over TikTok&#8217;s data collection practices and its Chinese connections.
The app resumed operations after President Donald Trump postponed the ban&#8217;s enforcement and extended the law&#8217;s deadline by 75 days. 
Apple and Google made the app available in their app store once they received a confirmation letter from US Attorney General&nbsp;Pam Bondi that the ban would not be enforced immediately, reported <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-02-14/apple-to-restore-tiktok-to-us-app-store-following-justice-department-letter">Bloomberg</a>.
SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/02/43709134/hubspot-posts-solid-q4-ai-driven-language-translations-to-accelerate-dau-growth-analysts-say">Reddit Posts Solid Q4, Analysts Expect AI-Language Translations To Grow Daily Active Users</a>
Why It Matters: Despite its absence from the&nbsp;app stores for almost a&nbsp;month, TikTok had regained about 90% of its pre-law traffic by late January, according to data from Cloudflare Radar.
The return of TikTok to the app stores comes after a series of events that unfolded in the past month. Trump stated his preference for the U.S. to hold a 50% stake in a joint venture to &#8220;save TikTok.&#8221; Vice President J.D. Vance and National Security Adviser&nbsp;Michael Waltz have been appointed to <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/global/25/02/43604572/jd-vance-quarterbacking-tiktok-deal-will-his-venture-capital-experience-secure-a-win">oversee a deal to save TikTok</a>. 
Meanwhile, Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/25/02/43585669/elon-musk-shuts-down-tiktok-buyout-rumors-says-he-prefers-to-build-companies-from-scratch-i-rarely-acquire-companies">publicly dismissed the idea of acquiring TikTok</a>, stating his preference for building companies from scratch. His comments were made in late January, around the same time President Trump signed an executive order to postpone the enforcement of a ban on TikTok.
According to data from the Sensor Tower in January, with a monthly user base of 115 million in the U.S., TikTok surpasses Snapchat (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SNAP#NYSE">SNAP</a>), Pinterest (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PINS#NYSE">PINS</a>), and Reddit (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/RDDT#NYSE">RDDT</a>). Angelo Zino, Senior Vice President of CFRA Research estimated the valuation of TikTok&#8217;s US operations between $40 billion to $50 billion.
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Image via Shutterstock
Disclaimer:&nbsp;This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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Palantir Technologies Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PLTR#NYSE">PLTR</a>) CEO Alex Karp envisions the company&#8217;s legacy as strengthening Western technological supremacy while deterring adversaries, amid surging demand for artificial intelligence solutions that has driven the stock up over 350% in the past year.
What Happened: In a recent interview with Stock MVP&#8216;s Tom Nash, Karp emphasized Palantir&#8217;s role in bolstering Western software capabilities: 
&#8220;The superiority of the West in software production has made Western countries, especially America, healthier, wealthier, and stronger,&#8221; he stated, adding that he wants potential adversaries to reconsider their stance against Western nations.
This vision comes as Palantir reported <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/25/02/43449486/palantir-q4-earnings-revenue-beat-eps-beat-us-revenue-up-52-customer-count-up-43-strong-guidance-this-is-a-new-phase-unlike-anything-that-has-come-before">strong fourth-quarter results</a> on Feb. 3, with revenue reaching $827.52 million, exceeding analyst expectations of $775.91 million. The company&#8217;s U.S. commercial revenue surged 64% year-over-year to $214 million, while government contracts contributed $343 million, up 45% from the previous year.
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">Alex Karp answered my question in today's AMA in the most <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%24PLTR&amp;src=ctag&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">$PLTR</a> way ever. This makes so proud to be a Palantir OG. <a href="https://t.co/Hlf3x8UOYy">pic.twitter.com/Hlf3x8UOYy</a>
&mdash; Tom Nash (@iamtomnash) <a href="https://twitter.com/iamtomnash/status/1889742490615349586?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/economics/macro-economic-events/25/02/43674775/trump-putin-highly-productive-call-sparks-oil-sell-off-as-investors-eye-geopolitical-de-escalation">Trump-Putin &#8216;Highly Productive&#8217; Call Sparks Oil Sell-Off As Investors Eye Geopolitical De-Escalation</a>
Why It Matters: Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives sees Palantir potentially emerging as a dominant force in AI software, comparing it to industry giants Oracle Corp. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>) and Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/CRM#NYSE">CRM</a>). Ives highlighted the <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/25/02/43646506/dan-ives-says-palantir-could-be-next-oracle-or-salesforce-as-ai-boom-drives-massive-software-spending-highlights-8-10x-multiplier-effect">multiplier effect in AI</a> spending, noting that &#8220;for every dollar spent on Nvidia chip, there&#8217;s an 8 to $10 multiplier across tech, across the ecosystem software.&#8221;
Despite Palantir&#8217;s elevated valuation metrics, including a price-to-earnings ratio of 613.95 and market capitalization of $258 billion, former hedge fund manager Martin Shkreli projects the company&#8217;s operational cash flow to reach $1.8 billion in 2025 and $2.7 billion by 2026. The company has forecast revenue of $3.75 billion for 2025, <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/25/02/43485885/pharma-bro-martin-shkreli-defends-palantirs-valuation-amid-24-surge-says-ai-firms-cash-flow-justifies-expensive-price">surpassing analyst estimates.</a>
The stock&#8217;s <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/PLTR/analyst-ratings">consensus price target</a> stands at $65.50, based on 23 analyst ratings, though recent assessments from Citigroup, RBC Capital, and UBS suggest an average target of $85, indicating potential downside from current levels around $117.
Price Action: Palantir closed at $117.39, up 4.24% on Wednesday, and rose 0.21% after hours to $117.64. Year to date, it&#8217;s up 56.12%, surging 368.62% over the past year, according to <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/pro/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">data from Benzinga Pro</a>.
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Equities

Palantir CEO Alex Karp Says Western Software Superiority Will Make America 'Stronger' As Burgeoning AI Demand Pushes Stock Up 368%

Everybody has their price, and William Lauder, scion of the cosmetics giant <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/large-cap/25/02/43580887/estee-lauder-moderna-and-paypal-are-among-top-10-large-cap-losers-last-week-feb-3-feb-7-are-the-others-in-your-portfolio">Estée Lauder's</a> founders, has his — $200 million. That&#8217;s the number the billionaire former executive chairman of the beauty brand has sold two oceanfront lots in <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/24/12/42499834/palm-beach-luxury-home-sales-take-off-after-trump-election-win-with-residents-looking-bask-in-mar-a-lago-glamor">Palm Beach</a>, Florida for, <a href="https://www.wsj.com/real-estate/luxury-homes/william-lauder-palm-beach-land-fcfc4904?mod=real-estate_lead_pos4">according to the Wall Street Journal</a>.
The deal, which just closed, beat the previous Palm Beach record of around $170 million, set when luxury car dealership owner Michael Cantanucci and his wife, Kimberly Cantanucci, purchased a 1.6-acre oceanfront property with 150 feet of ocean frontage.
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Brokered By Ryan Serhant</h2>
Lauder might have been surprised to get his asking number, as he listed the vacant parcels for $200 million in<a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/estee-lauder-scion-asks-200-million-for-palm-beach-properties-43add9b2?mod=article_inline&amp;mod=article_inline"> 2023</a> before lowering them. The sale, brokered by New York-based reality TV star <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/real-estate/25/01/43134231/ryan-serhant-describes-an-exodus-from-la-to-new-york-for-home-seekers-will-the-east-coast-pick-up-the-slack">Ryan Serhant</a>, was a tidy piece of business for the tycoon, as he purchased one of the properties—about 1 acre of land—for just under $25.4 million in 2020. He swiftly bought a second—1.8 acres in size—the following year for an undisclosed sum.
Aware of&nbsp; Palm Beach&#8217;s soaring property values, Lauder paid $155 million for the late conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh&#8217;s longtime Palm Beach estate shortly after putting the vacant lots on the market.
Trending: Maker of the $60,000 foldable home has 3 factory buildings, 600+ houses built, and big plans to solve housing —<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/money/boxabl-y2"> you can become an investor for $0.80 per share today.</a>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Soaring Palm Beach Prices</h2>
The sale is the latest blockbuster deal in Palm Beach&#8217;s dizzying luxury market. The median single-family home in the exclusive town was $10.9 million in Q4 2024, up a staggering 24.3% over the previous year. The median price in the luxury sector doubled to $34.4 million during the same period. High sales from the uber-wealthy have only drawn more attention to the coveted community. In 2022, Oracle (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>) founder and Chairman <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/real-estate/25/01/43009727/oracles-larry-ellison-has-just-bought-a-london-townhouse-for-202-million-to-add-to-his-global-property-portfolio">Larry Ellison</a>, one of the wealthiest men in the world, paid $173 million for a home in the vicinity of nearby Manalapan.&nbsp;
According to Forbes, Lauder, 64, is worth<a href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/william-lauder/"> $1.3 billion</a>. He is a member of the family&#8217;s third generation and was the CEO from 2004 to 2009. He joined Estée Lauder, in 1986 as regional marketing director of Clinique USA. He created the Origins brand in 1990. He&#8217;s a grandson of Estée Lauder, who co-founded the cosmetics firm, and the eldest son of Leonard Lauder, who was CEO and chairman for 17 years.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/go/arrived-private-credit-yf">Arrived Home's Private Credit Fund&#8217;s has historically paid an annualized dividend yield of 8.1%&#x2A;</a>, which provides access to a pool of short-term loans backed by residential real estate with just a $100 minimum.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Shuffling Trophy Homes</h2>
Largely retired from the company&#8217;s day-to-day running, Lauder owns multiple trophy homes nationwide. In 2019, he listed a unit at 778 Park Avenue in Manhattan for $45 million, dropped the price to $39 million, and then pulled it off the market. He is also listing another unit in the building for $26.95 million, just above the $25 million he paid in 2023. When closing costs, including brokers&#8217; fees and taxes, are factored in, it will barely register as a profit.
<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Humble Beginnings</h2>
Despite Estée Lauder&#8217;s global prominence, the company had humble beginnings. It was started by the matriarch of the family, who named the company after herself — she was born Josephine Esther Mentzer in 1908, the daughter of the hardware store owner, but changed her name to Estée Lauder after marrying.
Her uncle, John Schotz, was a European chemist who came to live with the family in Corona, Queens, after the break out of the First World War. He specialized in making his own &#8220;secret&#8221; skin-care products and set up a makeshift laboratory in the tiny stable behind the Mentzer&#8217;s house. Today, six billionaire members of the Lauder family own stakes in the publicly traded company, which has 23 brands, including MAC, Origins, and Clinique.
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Billionaire Estée Lauder Heir Strikes Palm Beach Land Deal For $200 Million, Cashing In On The Sizzling Real Estate Market

<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/softbank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Japanese investment holding company</a> SoftBank Group Corp (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SFTBF#OTC">SFTBF</a>) (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SFTBY#OTC">SFTBY</a>) reported third-quarter net sales of 1.83 trillion yen ($12.11 billion), up from 1.77 trillion yen a year ago. SoftBank segment net sales grew 5.2% to 1.66 trillion yen ($10.96 billion). Arm Holdings (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARM#NASDAQ">ARM</a>) net sales grew 22.9% to 148.7 billion yen ($0.98 billion).
Loss before tax for the company was 190.2 billion yen.
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The net loss was 369.1 billion yen (or $2.44 billion loss) compared to a profit of 950 million yen a year ago. Loss on investments was 481 billion yen (or $3.18 billion loss).
Vision Fund investments reported a 352.75 billion yen loss (or $2.33 billion loss), compared to a profit of 600.73 billion yen a year ago. The segment reported a 309.93 billion yen loss (or $2.05 billion loss) versus a profit of 422.74 billion yen.
SoftBank reported a segment income of 224.1 billion yen (or $1.48 billion) versus 196.3 billion yen a year ago. Arm&#8217;s segment income is 13.4 billion yen (or $0.09 billion) compared to a loss of 8 billion yen a year ago.
In January, the Trump Administration announced an&nbsp;AI infrastructure joint venture&nbsp;in the U.S. dubbed &#8220;Stargate,&#8221; comprising &nbsp;OpenAI,&nbsp;SoftBank Group,&nbsp;Oracle Corp (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>), and Abu Dhabi&#8217;s&nbsp;MGX. The venture will deploy $100 billion initially and up to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/01/43139410/softbanks-role-in-500-billion-stargate-ai-venture-seen-as-major-growth-driver-analyst-says" rel="noreferrer noopener">$500 billion over</a> the next four years.
Masayoshi Son of SoftBank and President Donald Trump announced in December plans for SoftBank to invest in the U.S. over the next four years while creating 100,000 jobs focused on &#8220;AI and related infrastructure.&#8221;
SoftBank offloaded its entire stake in Alibaba Group Holdings (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/BABA#NYSE">BABA</a>) in 2024 to <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/24/05/38791106/softbank-group-offloads-entire-alibaba-stake-after-jack-ma-founded-company-causes-6-16b-loss" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">focus on AI investments</a>.
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Photo by NP27 on Shutterstock.

SFTBF

SFTBY

SoftBank Q3 Earnings: Revenue Rises, Vision Fund Takes $2.33 Billion Hit As Investments Falter

Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives predicts Palantir Technologies Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/PLTR#NYSE">PLTR</a>) could emerge as a dominant force in the artificial intelligence software landscape, comparing it to industry giants Oracle Corp. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>) and Salesforce Inc. (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/CRM#NYSE">CRM</a>).
What Happened: In a CNBC interview <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjS1KOIuy_0">on</a> Tuesday, Ives highlighted the multiplier effect of AI infrastructure spending, noting that &#8220;for every dollar spent on Nvidia chip, there&#8217;s an 8 to $10 multiplier across tech, across the ecosystem software.&#8221; He emphasized that this trend is particularly evident in companies like Palantir and Salesforce.
The analyst&#8217;s bullish stance on Palantir comes amid the company&#8217;s remarkable stock performance, with shares up nearly 350% over the past year. The AI software firm recently reported strong fourth-quarter results, with revenue reaching $827.52 million, exceeding analyst expectations of $775.91 million.
Ives pointed to Jevons Paradox &#8211; an economic theory suggesting increased efficiency leads to higher demand &#8211; as a key driver of AI software adoption. &#8220;This is the software age that&#8217;s now starting to take place,&#8221; Ives stated, predicting &#8220;a massive spending wave in 2025.
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Why It Matters: The optimistic outlook aligns with Palantir CEO Alex Karp&#8216;s <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/news/earnings/25/02/43449486/palantir-q4-earnings-revenue-beat-eps-beat-us-revenue-up-52-customer-count-up-43-strong-guidance-this-is-a-new-phase-unlike-anything-that-has-come-before">recent shareholder letter</a>, where he described the current period as &#8220;the beginning of the first act of a revolution.&#8221; The company&#8217;s growth is particularly strong in U.S. operations, with commercial revenue up 64% year-over-year to $214 million.
Despite Palantir&#8217;s high valuation metrics, including a price-to-earnings ratio of 613.95 and market capitalization of $258 billion, former hedge fund manager Martin Shkreli projects the company&#8217;s cash flow from operations to reach $1.8 billion in 2025 and $2.7 billion by 2026, suggesting potential <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/equities/25/02/43485885/pharma-bro-martin-shkreli-defends-palantirs-valuation-amid-24-surge-says-ai-firms-cash-flow-justifies-expensive-price">justification for the premium valuation</a>.
The stock&#8217;s <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/quote/PLTR/analyst-ratings">consensus price target</a> stands at $65.50, based on 23 analyst ratings. The highest target is $125, while the lowest is $7.50. The most recent ratings from Citigroup, RBC Capital, and UBS suggest an average price target of $85, implying a 24.95% downside from current levels. 
<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img decoding="async" src="https://editorial-assets.benzinga.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/11210050/Screenshot-2025-02-12-at-7.30.01%E2%80%AFAM-1024x374.png" alt="" class="wp-image-777566" style="width:686px;height:auto" /></figure>
Price Action: Palantir stock has surged 340% in 2024, trading within a 52-week range of $20.33 to $116.76. It closed at $112.62 on Tuesday, down 3.45%, with a slight 0.56% after-hours recovery, according to <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/pro/">data from Benzinga Pro</a>.
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Disclaimer:&nbsp;This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Dan Ives Says Palantir Could Be Next Oracle Or Salesforce As AI Boom Drives Massive Software Spending, Highlights 8-10x Multiplier Effect

OpenAI's Sam Altman At Paris AI Meeting To Reuters: When Asked To Comment About Musk's Offer To Buy OpenAI, Altman Said: "I Have Nothing To Say. I Mean, It's Ridiculous, The Company Is Not For Sale. It's Another One Of Musk's Tactics To Try To Mess With Us"

Marvell Technology, Inc.&#8217;s (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MRVL#NASDAQ">MRVL</a>) stock has surged about 350% in the last five years as the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/topic/artificial-intelligence" rel="noreferrer noopener">artificial intelligence frenzy</a> has triggered demand for hardware and infrastructure.
The company supplies data infrastructure semiconductor solutions, spanning the data center core to the network edge. It is a fabless semiconductor supplier of high-performance standard and semi-custom products with core strengths in developing and scaling complex System-on-a-Chip architectures, integrating analog, mixed-signal, and digital signal processing functionality.
Also Read: <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/02/43570917/cloudflares-ai-expansion-and-enterprise-growth-set-the-stage-for-big-gains-analysts" rel="noreferrer noopener">Buy Cloudflare Or Sell? Analysts Vary Over Sales Acceleration And Business Momentum</a>
Its solutions empower the data economy and enable the data center, enterprise networking, carrier infrastructure, consumer, and automotive/industrial end markets.
Aswath Damodaran of the Stern School of Business at New York University flagged how computer chips have become part of every consumer good in the last four decades, from <a target="_blank" href="https://aswathdamodaran.substack.com/p/ais-winners-losers-and-wannabes-valuing" rel="noreferrer noopener">appliances to automobiles</a>.
He noted that semiconductor chip customers have also shifted from personal computers to smartphones, with demand emerging from automobile, crypto, and gaming companies in the last decade.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AAPL#NASDAQ">AAPL</a>) became the first <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/19/10/14589580/apple-microsoft-battle-for-position-as-worlds-most-valuable-company-by-market-cap" rel="noreferrer noopener">trillion-dollar company</a> in 2018 as its iPhones gained traction. It is currently worth over $3.4 trillion. Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/NVDA#NASDAQ">NVDA</a>) hit the trillion-dollar market cap in 2024 and is currently worth ~ $ $3.2 trillion, backed by its AI processors.
Damodaran also said that data processing has emerged as a demand driver. He highlighted the potential upside of the automobile business, backed by automated driving and other enhancements.
Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/TSLA#NASDAQ">TSLA</a>) also reached a trillion-dollar valuation, supported by Elon Musk&#8217;s EVs and autonomous driving technology.
Reportedly, a third of the ten global companies worth <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/media/25/01/42762874/broadcom-thrives-with-114-stock-surge-in-ai-boom-while-intel-faces-steep-decline" rel="noreferrer noopener">over $1 trillion</a> came from the chip industry, as 2024 proved immensely beneficial for the U.S. semiconductor sector.
For Marvell, China accounted for 42%- 44% of its revenue between fiscal <a target="_blank" href="https://app.quotemedia.com/data/downloadFiling?webmasterId=101533&amp;ref=318157157&amp;type=HTML&amp;symbol=MRVL&amp;cdn=36dc57774e0f888a3d7612adedcf3e12&amp;companyName=Marvell+Technology+Inc.&amp;formType=10-K&amp;dateFiled=2024-03-13" rel="noreferrer noopener">2022 and 2024</a>, while the U.S. generated 11%- 14%.
The company reported a 7% decline in fiscal 2024 revenue after a 33% growth in fiscal 2023 due to a decrease in sales in the majority of its end markets, including data center, enterprise networking, consumer, and carrier infrastructure, partially offset by growth in the automotive/industrial end market.
The decline coincides with the slowdown in Chinese demand, which impacted the company&#8217;s gross margin, which remained at 42% in fiscal 2024 versus 50% in 2023.
Semiconductor companies have adopted organic growth strategies (e.g., investing in research and development, product innovation, and operational efficiency improvements) or inorganic growth strategies (via acquisitions, mergers, or strategic partnerships) to expand their market share.
R&amp;D consumed 32%- 34% of Marvell&#8217;s revenue between fiscal 2022 and 2024, compared to bigger rival Broadcom Inc&#8217;s (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AVGO#NASDAQ">AVGO</a>) 15%- 18%. In absolute terms, Broadcom&#8217;s <a target="_blank" href="https://investors.broadcom.com/financial-information/annual-reports" rel="noreferrer noopener">R&amp;D stood at</a> $9.3 billion in fiscal 2024 on revenue of $51.6 billion versus Marvell&#8217;s R&amp;D at $1.9 billion on revenue of $5.5 billion.
In relative terms, Marvell&#8217;s R&amp;D margin is comparable to that of British chip designer Arm Holdings (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ARM#NASDAQ">ARM</a>). Arm&#8217;s fiscal 2024 <a target="_blank" href="https://investors.arm.com/financials/sec-filings" rel="noreferrer noopener">R&amp;D margin stood</a> at 61% on revenue of $3.23 billion. Still, Marvell posted a gross margin of above 40%, which is testimony to its pricing power or moat.
Marvell stock surged over 57% in the last 12 months, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.spglobal.com/spdji/en/indices/equity/sp-global-semiconductor-index/#overview" rel="noreferrer noopener">topping</a> S&amp;P Global Semiconductor Index&#8217;s 11%. Marvell commands an EV/EBITDA multiple of 262.5x versus Arm&#8217;s 283.1x and Broadcom&#8217;s 47.9x.
Marvell&#8217;s dividend yield is 0.20%, compared to 1.00% for Broadcom or 0.5% for Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MU#NASDAQ">MU</a>).
Marvell&#8217;s inorganic growth strategies include mergers and acquisitions. On October 5, 2021, Marvell completed the acquisition of Innovium, Inc., a provider of networking solutions for cloud and edge data centers, for $1.0 billion. On April 20, 2021, Marvell completed the acquisition of Inphi, a provider of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/m-a/20/10/18135863/marvell-confirms-merger-with-chipmaker-inphi-to-create-40b-entity" rel="noreferrer noopener">high-speed data movement</a> enabled by optical interconnects, for $9.9 billion.&nbsp;
Marvell&#8217;s operating cash flow, net of capital expenditures, helped it generate $1.02 billion in free cash flow as of February 3, 2024, compared to $1.07 billion in 2023 and $632 million in 2022.
Excess cash flows above capex help a company pay dividends and/or buyback shares, thereby adding to shareholder value. A company may also use the surplus funds for acquisitions and debt repayment to fuel growth.
Marvell&#8217;s positive AI catalysts for 2025: OpenAI,&nbsp;SoftBank Corp (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SFTBF#OTC">SFTBF</a>) (OTC:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SFTBY#OTC">SFTBY</a>), and&nbsp;Oracle Corp (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ORCL#NYSE">ORCL</a>) launched a&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/25/01/43127416/anthropic-gains-big-with-google-backing-aiming-for-60-billion-valuation-and-surging-ai-revenue" rel="noreferrer noopener">$500 billion joint venture</a>, Stargate, to build AI infrastructure in the U.S.
Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/MSFT#NASDAQ">MSFT</a>) committed $80 billion for AI-driven data centers. Alphabet Inc&#8216;s (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GOOG#NASDAQ">GOOG</a>) (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/GOOGL#NASDAQ">GOOGL</a>) Google&nbsp;earmarked over $1 billion for its OpenAI rival Anthropic.
BofA Securities Vivek Arya <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/25/02/43570410/broadcoms-trillion-dollar-run-analyst-expects-asic-to-take-10-15-market-share-backed-by-ai-compute-demand" rel="noreferrer noopener">expressed optimism over</a> AI infrastructure providers like Marvell, which are backed by AI compute/networking demand. He expects Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) vendors like Marvell and Broadcom (which hit the trillion dollars market cap in 2024) to bag over a 10%-15% share of the overall accelerator market as Nvidia GPUs dominate with their 80%+ share.
JPMorgan&#8217;s&nbsp;Harlan Sur noted that Marvell is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/25/01/42859614/jpmorgan-sees-marvells-ai-revenue-surge-with-2-billion-run-rate-in-networking-by-2025" rel="noreferrer noopener">well-positioned to</a> significantly exceed its previous AI target of $2.5 billion in calendar 2025. This is backed by AI optical/copper networking products and two AI ASIC programs for&nbsp;Amazon.Com Inc (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/AMZN#NASDAQ">AMZN</a>), Amazon Web Services, and&nbsp;Google.
Marvell is a holding in 200 US-traded&nbsp;ETFs. Investors can gain exposure to the stock through Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/VTI#NYSE">VTI</a>)
and Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 (NASDAQ:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/QQQ#NASDAQ">QQQ</a>).
MRVL&nbsp;Price Action: Marvell Technology stock closed up by 1.97% to $112.50 on Monday.
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