Trade Tracker: Jim Lebenthal buys more Oracle

Watch on YouTube ↗  |  January 22, 2026 at 18:02  |  3:36  |  CNBC
Speakers
Jim Lebenthal — Partner, Cetera Investment Management

Summary

On CNBC's Halftime Report, Jim Lebenthal said he is buying more Oracle for his personal account but not for clients, arguing the stock is cheap at about 23 times forward earnings and has become the focal point of AI debt, OpenAI, and bubble concerns. He thinks the shares may have stopped falling, though he remains cautious because the decline may not be over. He sees OpenAI's financial health as the biggest systemic risk and says Oracle's credit spreads are wider than peers but not distressed; losing investment grade would be a serious problem.

  • Jim Lebenthal explains buying more Oracle in his personal account, not client accounts.
  • All major AI concerns are concentrated in Oracle, and valuation is about 23 times forward earnings.
  • He says Oracle may have stopped falling, but he is not sure the decline is over.
  • Key risks include maintaining Oracle's investment-grade rating and OpenAI's financial health.
  • Oracle credit spreads are about 100 bps wider than Meta/Microsoft, with sub-6% yield, not distressed.
  • He would reconsider the equity if Oracle lost investment grade.
Ideas
Jim Lebenthal Partner, Cetera Investment Management 0:44
Buying Oracle; cheap despite AI worries
Lebenthal is adding to Oracle in his personal account, though not yet for clients, because all the major AI concerns—debt financing, OpenAI economics, and bubble worries—are concentrated in the stock and it trades at about 23 times forward earnings, which he considers cheap enough to take another slug. He thinks the stock may have stopped going down, but he remains cautious because it could still fall; a loss of Oracle's investment-grade rating would be a disaster for financing and the stock, and the bigger systemic worry is whether OpenAI can remain financially sound. He notes Oracle credit spreads are only about 100 basis points wider than Meta/Microsoft and its yield to maturity is below 6%, not distressed, so he does not expect an investment-grade loss now.
ORCL HIGH
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This CNBC video, published January 22, 2026, features Jim Lebenthal discussing ORCL. 1 trade idea extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.

Speakers: Jim Lebenthal  · Tickers: ORCL