Larry Ellison had a hilarious answer when a Wall Street analyst asked him to increase Oracle’s dividends
“You’re not going to get me to come out against increasing the dividend,” he said, giggling out loud. “I think that’s a hell of an idea, maybe 4% would be good. Start a petition. I’ll be the first to sign!” He laughed some more. “Actually, I have my truck out front. I can pick up my share.”
The funny thing is, he probably wouldn’t mind a bigger dividend. Ellison rarely sells his Oracle shares and, given how much he spends — mansions, private golf courses, a Hawaiian island, jets, cars, the America’s Cup — he’s been known to borrow money to smooth out his cash flow. Last year, he used a fraction of his Oracle stake as collateral to secure a $10 billion personal line of credit.