When the company missed software sales estimates last week, Oracle stock (ORCL -0.97%) took a 9.3% pounding from the market. While Oracle has seen a fair amount of success over the years, its late entry into cloud computing is forcing it to forge alliances with other players, including both Microsoft and salesforce.com. As the world moves deeper into the cloud, the future of Oracle stock may be largely tied to this transition.

In the video below, Fool.com contributor Doug Ehrman discusses how the reaction of Oracle stock to slowing software sales may be a sign of a bigger shift in the industry.