Ahead of next Tueday’s launch of Oracle8, Oracle Corp reported fourth-quarter net income that surged 35% to $360m, or $0.54 per share – exactly what Wall Street wanted. Meeting expectations isn’t enough anymore, however, and after the bell Oracle shares dropped $2 to $51.25. Revenue for the quarter grew 33% to $1.95bn. Overall license and related revenue rose 26% in the quarter with applications leading the way on a remarkable 78% growth rate. Geographically, North America saw 44% growth, Asia- Pacific grew 25% and Europe rose 20%. For the year, net income rose 36% to $821.5m, or $1.22 per share, on revenue up 35% at $5.68bn. Current-year figures include a third-quarter charge of $24m stemming from the Datalogix acquisition (CI No 3,116).
