Posted by
alfredlester on Wednesday, September 16, 2009 8:06:53 PM
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) &<51; The Oracle Corporation, the business software maker, said Wednesday that its quarterly profit rose 4 percent in the latest quarter, matching Wall Street&S217;s forecasts Wednesday, despite a drop in sales that revealed businesses are still being tightfisted about buying new software.
The sales figure was short of analysts&S217; expectations, and Oracle&S217;s shares fell 3 percent.
The company, based in Redwood Shores, Calif., reported after the market closed, reflect a familiar pattern that has emerged during the recession.
Oracle&S217;s sales of new software licenses fell 17 percent to $1 billion, while revenue from updates and technical support contracts climbed 6 percent to $3.1 billion. While many businesses are still reluctant to pay for new software, existing Oracle customers usually pay the company to do the follow-up on software they have already bought, which explains why the numbers sometimes go in different directions payday loan companies.
The rise in support work helped lift Oracle&S217;s net income for the quarter to $1.12 billion, or 22 cents a share, compared with $1.08 billion, or 21 cents a share, in the quarter a year ago.
Excluding one-time items, profit was 30 cents per share, matching the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.
Sales fell 5 percent to $5.05 billion, short of expectations for $5.25 billion.
The stock fell 71 cents, or 3.2 percent, to $21.42 in after-hours trading, likely on disappointment about the revenue shortfall. Shares had closed down 53 cents at $22.13 in regular trading.
Profit Rose at Oracle Despite a Drop in Sales
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