LinkedIn shares up on 47% rise in Q2 revenue
04 Aug 2014
LinkedIn shares were up 8 per cent to $194.90 in early trading with the company also reporting a 47-per cent rise in second-quarter revenue on Thursday, Reuters reported.
At least 14 brokerages hiked their price targets on the stock, by as much as $30 to a high of $300.
The company's hiring business revenue, called Talent Solutions, was up 49 per cent, assuaging concerns of market saturation that came to be voiced after LinkedIn forecast 2014 revenue that undershot the expectations of analysts in May.
''LinkedIn's current roster of a little over 28,000 corporate solutions clients implies a minority penetration rate for Talent Solutions on a global base of about 745,000 addressable businesses that have more than 100 employees,'' Credit Suisse analysts wrote in a client note.
The lender maintained its ''outperform'' rating on the stock.
LinkedIn's membership was up by a third to 313 million in the quarter ended 30 June.
The company, seeking replication of its success in the US internationally, launched a Chinese language ''beta'' version of its main website in February to expand in the world's largest internet market by users.
''Two-thirds of members are international and this cohort is growing rapidly, propelled by the launch of the simplified Chinese site (in) February, and has become the fastest growing market to date,'' Cowen & Co analysts wrote in a client note.
According to LinkedIn, it lost $1 million, or 1 cent per share, as against a profit of $3.7 million, or 3 cents, a year earlier, The Boston Globe reported.
Excluding adjustments, earnings worked out to 51 cents, up from 38 cents. Revenue was up at $533.9 million from $363.7 million.
For the current quarter, the California company projects earnings at 44 cents per share and revenue of up to $547 million.
