Oracle shares slump on earnings hit by pandemic

[SAN FRANCISCO] Oracle shares fell on Tuesday after the business software company reported its earnings took a hit from the pandemic's toll on hotels, shops and other enterprises that rely on its cloud computing offerings.

Oracle reported a profit of US$3.1 billion on revenue of US$10.4 billion in the fiscal quarter that ended May 31, compared with US$3.7 billion net income on US$11.1 billion in revenue during the same period a year earlier.

The quarter also ended Oracle's 2020 fiscal year, with the Silicon Valley-based company reporting that its annual revenue was down slightly from 2019.

"Our overall business did remarkably well considering the pandemic," Oracle chief executive Safra Catz said in the earnings release.

"But, our results would have been even better except for customers in the hardest-hit industries that we serve such as hospitality, retail, and transportation postponing some of their purchases."

Oracle shares were down about four per cent in after-market trades that followed release of the earnings figures.

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The Silicon Valley firm competes in some segments with rivals such as Google, Amazon and Microsoft.

AFP