Oracle stock gained Monday following a new report tapping the enterprise software company as a leading suitor for the popular short-video app TikTok. The deadline to avoid a potential TikTok ban is early next month.
Oracle is "accelerating talks" with the White House on a deal that would have Oracle run TikTok, according to Politico. TikTok is operating in the U.S. under a temporarily reprieve from a law that bans the short video app unless its Chinese parent ByteDance divests ownership. President Donald Trump delayed enforcement of the ban for 75 days on his first day in office Jan. 20, allowing TikTok to restart operations for its more than 170 million U.S. users after a brief shutdown.
The deal under discussion would "essentially require the U.S. government to depend on Oracle to oversee the data of American users and ensure the Chinese government doesn't have a backdoor to" TikTok. That's according to the Politico report, which cited three anonymous sources familiar with the talks. There are concerns about how much that arrangement would ultimately separate TikTok from its Chinese parent company, the Politico report added.
The Information also reported that Oracle is the "leading contender" to run TikTok.
On the stock market today, Oracle stock is up more than 2% at 153.31 in a strong overall day for U.S. tech stocks. Oracle stock is trading below its 200-day moving average after a recent slump.
TikTok Ban: April 5 Deadline
Oracle did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Politico report.
While Oracle hasn't formally expressed interest, the tech giant has been repeatedly linked to TikTok. Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison joined Trump for a White House press conference in late January announcing an AI-focused private joint venture called Stargate. During the press conference, Trump said he'd be open to Ellison buying TikTok.
Oracle has a previous agreement with TikTok to host U.S. TikTok user data on servers in the U.S., which was called Project Texas. The latest deal under discussions is being dubbed "Project Texas 2.0," according to Politico.
With an April 5 deadline approaching, the White House is taking an "unprecedented role" in connecting a deal, Reuters noted in a report Monday. Vice President JD Vance told NBC News late last week that there would "almost certainly be a high-level agreement" in place by the time of the deadline. The administration is dealing with "four different groups" for a potential deal, he said.
Oracle Stock Down 8% In 2025
Meanwhile, Oracle stock has fallen 8% so far this year. That's after shares rallied nearly 60% in 2024 for the company's biggest annual gain since 1999.
The TikTok chatter comes as Oracle stock is slumping to start the year. The 8% year-to-date slump compares to a 60% rally in 2024 that marked the company's biggest annual gain since 1999.
Investors have generally been focused on Oracle's ability to capture AI-related demand for its cloud infrastructure business. Shares slumped 3% last week after Oracle posted lower-than-forecast earnings for its February-ended fiscal third quarter. TikTok was not mentioned during a conference call with analysts that followed the March 10 earnings release.
Overall, Oracle stock has an IBD Composite Rating of 70 out of 99, according to IBD Stock Checkup. The score combines five separate proprietary ratings into one rating. The best growth stocks have a Composite Rating of 90 or better.
