Earnings Roundup: Autobytel.com tops estimates in 3Q
Autobytel.com Inc. (Nasdaq: ABTL) reported a smaller-than-expected loss in its third quarter Thursday, losing $5.7 million, or 37 cents a share, on sales of $10.6 million.
First Call consensus expected it to lose 39 cents a share in the quarter.
Its shares closed up 1/8 to 15 7/8 ahead of the earnings report.
The $10.6 million in sales represents a 64 percent improvement compared to the year-ago quarter when it lost $5.5 million, or 65 cents a share, on sales of $6.5 million.
In the quarter, the number of purchase requests sent to dealers in the third quarter reached a record 590,000, a 15 percent increase from the second quarter of 1999, and a 75 percent increase over the same quarter a year ago. Autobytel.com also reported that its network of paying dealers increased to 3,063, up from 2,865 dealers at the close of the second quarter. The percentage of revenue from related products, such as insurance and financing, and from international fees, was 12 percent in the third quarter.
"Leadership comes from results," said CEO Mark Lorimer in a prepared release. "Our third quarter results again demonstrate our ability to extend our lead in the automotive e-commerce marketplace and leverage our brand permission beyond our traditional new car buying program."
Autobytel.com shares peaked at 58 in March before slipping to a low of 11 1/8 in September.
Among other technology companies reporting earnings Thursday:
First Call consensus expected it to earn 8 cents a share in the quarter.
Its shares closed off 1/8 to 8 5/8 ahead of the earnings report.
In the year-ago quarter, it made $3.6 million, or 7 cents a share, on sales of $459.6 million.
Analysts were expecting a loss of 31 cents a share.
In the year-ago quarter, it lost $808,000, or 17 cents a share.
Its stock closed up 6 7/32 to 57 ahead of the earnings report.
The online lending company posted a third quarter loss of almost $13 million, or 33 cents per share, excluding goodwill writedowns and charges related to stock compensation. First Call's survey of six analysts predicted a loss of 34 cents per share.
Including $5.6 million in writedowns of unearned compensation and $1.7 million in goodwill amortization, E-Loan lost $20.2 million, or 52 cents per share.
Third quarter revenue rose 145 percent year-over-year, to $5 million from $2.1 million. Mortgage applications increased 38 percent in the quarter, while the volume of purchase loans increased to 54 percent of total loans from 18 percent in the second quarter.
The online provider of financial news and commentary reported a net loss of $7.2 million, or 29 cents per share, excluding a charge related to stock options. First Call's survey of six analysts predicted a loss of 32 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30.
Including charges related to preferred dividends and stock compensation, TheStreet.com lost $7.8 million, or 32 cents per share.
Third quarter revenue increased to $3.9 million, a 21 percent increase from the second quarter's $3.3 million. Subscription revenue rose 45 percent sequentially to $1.4 million, or 35.9 percent of TheStreet.com's business. Advertising and e-commerce revenue increased to $2.1 million, up 23 percent from the second quarter.
TheStreet.com had 94,000 subscribers at the end of September, up 42 percent sequentially. The website now has almost 150 advertisers.
The website saw a monthly average of almost 1.3 million visitors during the quarter, the company said, citing statistics from DoubleClick.
The Web community host lost $7.8 million, or 29 cents per share, not including acquisition-related writedowns. First Call's survey of three analysts predicted a loss of 34 cents per share.
Including $6.2 million in amortization of purchased intangible assets, theglobe.com lost $14 million, or 53 cents per share.
Third quarter revenue increased to $4.9 million. The company recently warned revenues would be in the $4.7 million to $4.9 million range, slightly below analysts' earlier expectations.
theglobe.com added 342,000 new members in the third quarter, compared to 278,000 additions in the second. The network now has 2.7 million registered members. The company now has 166 advertisers, 77 percent of which are consumer brands.
Company executives said they were pleased with two new products, globelists and uPublish. "Once supported by our aggressive advertising campaign, we believe further growth will be both rapid and significant," co-CEO Todd Krizelman said. >