Oracle Ups Retek Bid To $11.25

Oracle late Thursday raised the stakes for Retek Inc. to $11.25 per share, countering SAP's $11-per-share offer earlier in the day.

Retek had urged shareholders to accept the latest SAP offer.

Analysts expect the bidding to continue, and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, in a prepared statement, showed no signs of backing down. "Our North American applications business is larger than SAP's. We intend to defend our No. 1 position."

Last month, SAP and Retek struck a deal under which SAP would acquire the retail-management-application vendor for $8.50 per share, or approximately $496 million. But last week, Oracle made its own bid to acquire Retek, offering $9 per share.