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Oracle ORCL is striving hard to strengthen its position in the lucrative cloud space.

Cloud space was booming even before the pandemic as enterprises were shifting their workloads to the cloud. Migration to the cloud offers enterprises increased scalability, faster deployment, cost efficiency, higher security and easy disaster recovery management. The pandemic only accelerated this shift.

The work from home, hybrid work model and lockdown restrictions have boosted demand for cloud-based video conferencing apps, gaming, online learning and e-commerce services, making it a new way of life. This is further driving the cloud market.

According to Fortune Business Insights, the worldwide cloud computing market is set to witness a CAGR of 17.9% between 2021 and 2028 and reach $791.48 billion by 2028. This opportunity bodes well for companies like Oracle that provide various cloud solutions and services.

Oracles top line is gaining from momentum across the cloud business, driven by the strong uptake of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) services and Autonomous Database offerings. Healthy adoption of cloud-based applications, comprising NetSuite Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Fusion ERP and Fusion Human Capital Management (HCM), is another catalyst.

The companys software as a service (SaaS), infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) and platform-as-a-service (PaaS) products are likely to grow strongly over the next few years as enterprises rapidly migrate to the cloud environment.

For second-quarter fiscal 2022, management noted that the companys IaaS and SaaS business increased 22% to $2.7 billion, respectively. Management stated that the companys total cloud business revenues on an annualized basis totaled $10.7 billion, while the cloud bookings growth rate was faster than the cloud revenue growth rate.

In the last reported quarter, Oracles Cloud services and license support revenues (73% of total revenues) increased 6% year over year (up 6% at constant currency) to $7.554 billion. The upside can be attributed to continued strength in the Fusion, Autonomous Database and OCI services.

Revenues from Fusion ERP, Fusion HCM and NetSuite ERP were up 35%, 25% and 28%, respectively, in the fiscal second quarter.

Higher availability of Oracle cloud regions globally is expected to fortify its competitive position in the cloud computing domain.

Recently, Oracle unveiled one cloud region each in Italy and the Nordics as part of its strategy to expand its global cloud region footprint to 44 by 2022. With the opening of the Oracle Cloud Milan Region, Oracle now has 36 cloud regions globally. Prior to that, the company opened the Stockholm cloud region in the Nordics.

Recently, Oracle announced the takeover Cerner Corporation CERN in an all-cash transaction amounting to $28.3 billion or $95 per share. Cerner specializes in providing digital information systems used within hospitals to facilitate medical professionals deliver better patient health outcomes. The acquisition will help Oracle to enhance its position in the healthcare technology space by combining healthcare data with its cloud services, noted CNBC.

Escalating costs in the cloud platform amid intense competition in the cloud vertical from dominant players like Amazons AMZN Amazon Web Services and Microsofts MSFT Azure platform remain major concerns for Oracle.

Per a Statista report, Amazon accounted for 32% of the global cloud infrastructure services market, followed by Microsoft (21%) and Google Cloud (8%) in third-quarter 2021.

In the last reported quarter, Amazons AWS revenues (15% of total company sales) rose 39% year over year to $16.1 billion. Expanding AWS services portfolio is helping Amazon to maintain its dominance in the cloud domain by gaining more customers.

Microsofts performance is benefitting from strength in the Azure cloud platform amid the accelerated digital transformation taking place globally. Microsoft reported a 50% year-over-year (up 48% at constant currency) increase in Azure and other cloud services revenues in first-quarter fiscal 2022.

Also, high debt levels are a concern for Oracle. As of Nov 30, 2021, Oracle had cash & cash equivalents and marketable securities of $22.84 billion, while non-current notes payable and other borrowings stood at $73.43 billion.

Last week, Bloomberg reported that if Oracle amasses huge debt for the Cerner acquisition, it faces the risk of seeing its investment-grade ratings downgraded by all three major U.S. rating graders S&P Global Ratings, Fitch Ratings and Moodys Investors Service.

Although, at present, the companys cloud business may not be relatively big, its strategy has the potential to pay off in the long term.

Currently, Oracle carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free reportAmazon.com, Inc. (AMZN): Free Stock Analysis ReportMicrosoft Corporation (MSFT): Free Stock Analysis ReportCerner Corporation (CERN): Free Stock Analysis ReportOracle Corporation (ORCL): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment Research

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Is Oracle's (ORCL) Cloud Strategy Headed the Right Direction? - Entrepreneur

Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:

Apple (AAPL) The company is once again approaching a $3 trillion market value, needing to reach $182.86 per share to achieve that milestone. Separately, Apple is closing its 12 New York City stores to indoor traffic due to the spread of the Covid-19 omicron variant. Apple edged higher by 0.3% in premarket action.

Vipshop Holdings (VIPS) The China-based e-commerce company's stock fell 2.4% in the premarket after cutting its current-quarter revenue guidance. Vipshop cited its "latest view on the market and operational conditions" without being specific, but a Jefferies report said warmer weather and an increase in Covid-19 cases likely dented consumer demand.

R.R. Donnelley (RRD) R.R. Donnelley slid 1.6% in premarket trading after the business communications and marketing services company disclosed an intrusion into its technical systems. Donnelley said it is investigating and is not aware of any client data being compromised.

Coinbase (COIN) The cryptocurrency exchange operator's shares dropped 2.2% in the premarket as the price of bitcoin retreated, putting the stock in danger of breaking a four-day win streak that saw it gain 17.7% over that stretch.

Extreme Networks (EXTR) The cloud computing company's stock jumped 3.6% in premarket action after Needham raised its price target on the stock to $18.50 per share from $16. The stock had closed Monday at $16.03.

Howard Hughes (HHC) The real estate firm has reportedly agreed to sell a controlling interest in the Bank of America Tower in Chicago to private equity firm Oak Hill Advisors for more than $1 billion, according to a Dow Jones report quoting sources familiar with the deal.

Nvidia (NVDA) The graphics chip maker's shares added 1.2% in the premarket after rising for the past 4 days in a row and helping to lead the iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX) to a record high in Monday trading. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) also a big factor in driving the SOXX higher added 1% in premarket trading. Chip stocks have been rising amid supply shortages and strong demand, leading to higher prices for chips.

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Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Apple, Vipshop, Coinbase and others - CNBC

Equity markets have performed well in the past 12 months, much to the joy of investors. Maybe that will continue next year or perhaps it won't. But no matter what happens in 2022, it's essential to look beyond the stock market's performance during a single calendar year. The magic formula to grow capital is always the same.

First, buy shares of great companies. Second, keep these shares for a while, even amid market booms and busts. Let's look into two companies that could be excellent forever holdings: DexCom (NASDAQ:DXCM) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN). Here's why both are worth buying.

Medical devices specialist DexCom has handily outperformed the market this year. The company can thank the increasing adoption of its G6 Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) system for that. CGM devices help diabetes patients keep track of their blood glucose levels continuously, hence the name. The G6 makes 288 glucose level measurements per day -- or one every five minutes.

And since CGMs are associated with better health outcomes for diabetes patients, it isn't surprising that it keeps gaining new customers. DexCom's revenue jumped by 30% year over year to $650.2 million in the third quarter. In the press release announcing this quarterly update, DexCom said that "Volume growth in conjunction with strong new customer additions continues to be the primary driver of revenue growth as awareness of real-time CGM increases."

That's not a one-off: The company has generally recorded strong top-line growth thanks to the fact that CGM continues to win over diabetes patients. And there remains a long runway for growth. Many diabetes patients still rely on blood glucose meters (BGMs), despite their inferiority compared to CGM devices. The market in the U.S. remains severely underpenetrated. The market outside the U.S. shows an even more attractive opportunity since the U.S. is one of the world's leaders in CGM adoption.

Image source: Getty Images.

The number of people with diabetes will continue to increase, too, which will provide a long-term tailwind to DexCom's business. Naturally, there are risks to consider before investing in DexCom. The first is competition. Companies such as Abbott Laboratoriesand others are also looking to tap into this market. Another caveat worth mentioning is DexCom's valuation.

With a forward price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of 201 as of this writing, DexCom looks expensive by any metric. However, neither of these risks warrants avoiding DexCom. There is more than enough space in the CGM market for multiple winners, and DexCom is already one of the leaders in the sector. Further, while DexCom's shares might be volatile in the short term due to its rich valuation metrics, the long-term opportunities it boasts are too juicy to pass up.

Stocks with significant growth potential often sport sky-high valuations. In the long run, I believe DexCom will justify these metrics by delivering market-beating returns, which makes the healthcare stock worth buying.

Amazon's shares have lagged the broader market this year. Here are two potential explanations for this somewhat surprising fact. First, the company's stock soared in 2020 as customers turned to e-commerce amid the worst of the pandemic and government-imposed lockdowns. Many so-called "pandemic stocks" have been significantly less successful on the market this year. Second, Amazon's iconic founder, Jeff Bezos, stepped down from his role as the company's CEO. Andy Jassy, the former CEO of Amazon Web Services, is the company's new CEO.

This transition happened in the third quarter. Bezos' decision to step down may have made some investors uneasy. After all, the company had not known any other CEO in its over 20-year history. But all these issues are mere background noise, in my view. There is too much going Amazon's way, and it will continue to deliver solid returns from here on out. Here is why.

The company boasts multiple competitive advantages. Its brand name, undoubtedly one of the most recognizable in the world, is a powerful intangible asset. Amazon's core e-commerce business benefits from the network effects: The more merchants join the platform, the more it attracts customers and vice versa. Amazon also offers lower prices on average than most of its e-commerce peers.

In addition to its leadership in the e-commerce industry, it also stands atop the cloud computing market.Both the e-commerce and cloud computing industries are still ripe for growth, and Amazon has plenty of cash on hand to invest in various ventures within these two sectors and others. The company ended Q3 with $29.9 billion in cash and cash equivalents.

That's not including Amazon's other segments that contribute to its financial results and add some diversity to its operations, such as its streaming service Prime Videos and its grocery business via Whole Foods. That's why, even with a forward P/E of 83.6, Amazon is well worth consideration. In my view, Amazon's business will continue to thrive for many years to come, despite a poor performance on the market in the 12 months.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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2 Unstoppable Growth Stocks to Buy and Hold Forever - Motley Fool