Oracle software sales, profit beat forecasts

Oracle Corp's quarterly profit beat Wall Street expectations on strong software sales growth, suggesting that the approach of the "fiscal cliff" has yet to crimp corporate spending on technology.

Shares of the world's No. 3 software maker rose 2.6 percent on the news.

"I would call it an early Christmas present," FBR Capital Markets analyst Daniel Ives said. "It's a positive sign for the overall technology sector."

The company reported that software sales and cloud software subscriptions rose 17 percent from a year earlier to $2.4 billion in its fiscal second quarter.

Oracle had forecast that new software sales would climb 5 to 15 percent from a year earlier when it last reported earnings on September 20.

Oracle posted a second-quarter profit, excluding items, of 64 cents per share, beating the average analyst forecast of 61 cents according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Oracle shares rose to $33.75 in extended trade after closing at $32.88 on Nasdaq.