Yahoo! (YHOO) reported first quarter EPS of 17 cents, a penny ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate. This marks the company’s fifth consecutive positive earnings surprise.
It was a 23% decrease from the same quarter in 2010, however.
Revenue Beats
Revenue excluding traffic acquisition costs (revenue ex-TAC) came in at $1.064 billion, a 9% decline from the same quarter in 2010, but ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.054 billion.
The decline was due in large part to the revenue share related to the search agreement with Microsoft (MSFT). Under the terms of the deal, Microsoft receives $12 of every $100 in ad revenue generated from clicks alongside ads next to search results.
Excluding this item and other special items, revenue ex-TAC for the first quarter of 2011 was essentially flat year-over-year.
Overall, search revenue ex-tac was down 19%. Display revenue, which accounted for 44% of total revenue, climbed 10%.
Meanwhile, operating income was up 1% over the same period.
Solid Cash Position
Free cash flow for the quarter was down 7% to $59 million. The company repurchased 8 million shares in the quarter for $137 million.
Yahoo! had $3.528 billion in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments at March 31, 2011.
Outlook
Management expects second quarter revenue ex-TAC between $1.075 billion and $1.125 billion. Total expenses less TAC are expected to be in the range of $915 million to $935 million.
Operating income is expected to be between $160 million and $190 million.
It did not give specific EPS guidance, but the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the second quarter is currently 17 cents.
Yahoo! is a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold) stock.
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