BUSINESS BRIEFING / SOFTWARE
Times Staff and Wire Reports
Oracle Corp. reported that its earnings dropped 7% in its fiscal fourth quarter as sales slid 5%.
The Redwood Shores, Calif., company blamed the declines on a stronger dollar, which makes deals done in other currencies worth less.
Oracle said after the stock market closed Tuesday that it earned $1.89 billion, or 38 cents a share, in the period that ended May 31. A year earlier profit was $2.04 billion, or 39 cents. Excluding certain items, Oracle earned 46 cents a share, 2 cents more than analysts expected.
Oracle shares rose 49 cents, or 2.5%, to $20.36 in after-hours trading. In regular trading the stock fell 10 cents to $19.87.
