Oracle slides by most since January on mounting AI spending

Oracle Corp. shares plunged the most in almost 11 months after the company escalated its spending on AI data centers and other equipment, rising outlays that are taking longer to translate into cloud revenue than investors want.

Capital expenditures, a metric of data center spending, were about $12 billion in the quarter, an increase from $8.5 billion in the preceding period, the company said Wednesday in a statement. Analysts anticipated $8.25 billion in capital spending in the quarter, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. 

Oracle now expects capital expenditures will reach about $50 billion in the fiscal year ending in May 2026 — a $15 billion increase from its September forecast — executives said on a conference call after the results were released.

The shares fell 11% to $198.85 at the close Thursday in New York, the biggest single-day decline since Jan. 27. Oracle’s stock had already lost about a third of its value through Wednesday’s close since a record high on Sept. 10. Meanwhile, a measure of Oracle’s credit risk reached a fresh 16-year high.

The latest earning report and share slide marks a reversal of fortunes for a company that just a few months ago was enjoying a blistering rally and clinching multibillion-dollar data center deals with the likes of Open...