TMP shares drop on earnings forecast

Shares of TMP Worldwide, the owner of job listings site Monster.com, dropped more than 10 percent Wednesday after the company cut its 2002 earnings forecast based on weakness in the employment market. The New York-based company said Tuesday that it expects first-quarter profits of between 13 cents to 16 cents per share, off the average 23 cent estimate of analysts surveyed by First Call. The company also expects 2002 total commissions and fees from job listings at Monster.com and TMP's offline recruitment services to hit $1.37 billion to $1.39 billion, down almost 5.5 percent from 2001's $1.44 billion. It added that the company's expected gains from Monster.com will most likely be offset by declines in TMP's traditional recruitment business. Late last year, TMP lost a bid to acquire Monster.com rival HotJobs when online portal Yahoo stepped in with a competitive offer.