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Larry Ellison cancels Oracle share sale plan worth $7.5 billion
Oracle co-founder withdraws plan to sell up to 50 million shares as stock faces pressure
MUMBAI: Larry Ellison has decided not to cash out, pulling the plug on a trading arrangement that could have put as many as 50 million Oracle shares worth about $7.5 billion on the market.
Oracle confirmed on Saturday that its co-founder and executive chairman had cancelled the arrangement, just a day after it became public through a regulatory filing. The company said no shares had been sold under the plan and Ellison does not currently have another arrangement to sell his Oracle holdings.
The trading plan was put in place on June 22, 2026 and was due to remain active until October 24. Oracle did not disclose why Ellison chose to terminate it.
The decision comes as Oracle’s stock has been having a rough run. Shares are down nearly 23 per cent this year, with investors increasingly focused on the cost of the company’s aggressive expansion and the resulting pressure on free cash flow.
That concern has remained despite Oracle recently reporting quarterly results that beat Wall Street expectations. The company posted stronger-than-expected revenue and a smaller cash burn than analysts had feared, initially giving the shares a lift before concerns about the pace of cash-flow recovery returned.
Ellison, who remains Oracle’s largest shareholder with more than 38 per cent of the company, has plenty riding on that recovery. He stepped down as Oracle’s chief executive in 2014 but continues to serve as executive chairman.
The share-sale reversal also lands against the backdrop of another hefty bill. Oracle has increased its projected restructuring costs by about $700 million, taking the expected total to roughly $2.8 billion. The programme includes job cuts and other measures as the company reshapes its business while pouring money into AI and cloud infrastructure.
For investors, Ellison’s decision removes the immediate prospect of billions of dollars’ worth of Oracle stock entering the market. But it does little to settle the bigger question hanging over the company: how quickly its heavy AI and cloud investment can translate into stronger cash flow.
