Oracle misses 3Q revenue expectations, shares fall

(AP) NEW YORK - Oracle says its fiscal third-quarter revenue declined by 1 percent, falling short of analysts’ expectations and sending shares down sharply in after-hours trading.

Oracle Corp. said Wednesday that it earned $2.5 billion, or 52 cents per share, in the December-February quarter. That’s up from $2.5 billion, or 49 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier. Adjusted earnings were 65 cents per share in the latest quarter.

Revenue fell 1 percent to $8.96 billion.

Analysts polled by FactSet expected earnings of 66 cents per share, excluding charges for past acquisitions and other costs, on revenue of $9.38 billion.

Oracle says new software licenses and online subscriptions fell 2 percent to 2.3 billion. The company had predicted that number would rise by 3 percent to 13 percent.