S&P kept Oracle investment grade. Its own numbers don’t support that call.
I am not opposed to credit rating agencies giving companies time to prove their business models. However, the numbers must also make sense.
S&P Global Ratings has maintained Oracle's investment-grade credit rating despite the company's projected financial challenges. According to S&P, Oracle's revenue is expected to rise by 240% over the next few years, while debt and cash flow are anticipated to increase by 410% and 32% respectively. However, S&P's own analysis reveals that Oracle's free cash flow will decline by 32% and turn negative from 2025 to 2027.
Oracle's recent business changes, such as heavy investment in AI technology and its partnership with OpenAI, are contributing to the uncertainty surrounding the company's financial outlook. S&P acknowledges that Oracle is currently a "show me" story with limited visibility and numerous question marks. Despite this, S&P believes that Oracle's credit rating could be threatened if the company does not maintain or reduce its debt-to-EBITDA ratio or fails to generate positive free cash flow by 2028.
Written by urgent.news from Fortune's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
