(MarketWatch) -- Baidu Inc.'s first-quarter net income grew 24% on higher-than-expected revenue, as traffic to the site improved since it launched a new marketing campaign.
Baidu's American Depositary Shares rose 4% to $233.07 in after-hours trading as the company's second-quarter revenue forecast topped analysts' estimates.
The company, which holds a commanding share of the Internet-search market in China, had warned earlier this year that its online marketing customers might scale back on spending. The company was also hit by negative publicity late last year when it was criticized by state media for carrying ads from unlicensed medical companies.
The company spent an additional CNY40 million ($5.85 million) on marketing in the first quarter, including a high-profile television ad campaign over the Chinese New Year holiday in January.
Baidu reported first-quarter net income of CNY181.1 million ($26.5 million), or CNY5.22 (76 cents) per ADS, compared with CNY146.6 million, or CNY4.22 per ADS, a year earlier. Excluding stock-based compensation, earnings rose to 86 cents per ADS from 68 cents. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected 76 cents.
Revenue climbed 41% to CNY810.7 million, or $118.6 million, above the company's February forecast of $114 million-$117 million.
The company said it expects revenue in the second quarter to be between $157 million and $161 million, topping analyst forecasts of $146.5 million, according to Thomson Reuters.
Active online-marketing customers increased 15% to more than 185,000, as revenue per customer grew 22%.
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