LinkedIn Q1 revenues surge 35pc, but Wall Street is not impressed with outlook

1 May 2015

LinkedIn has reported Q1 revenues of US$637.7m, up 35pc on last year, as three of its main businesses fired on all cylinders. However, a weak Q2 outlook spooked investors and sent shares tumbling by 25pc.

The company reported a net loss of US$43m during the first quarter.

LinkedIn reported that Talent Solutions revenue grew 36pc to US$396m and accounts for 60pc of the company’s overall revenues.

Revenue from Marketing Solutions totalled US$119m, up 38pc on last year and representing 18pc of total revenue.

Premium Subscriptions revenues amounted to US$122m, up 28pc year-on-year and representing 19pc of total revenue.

LinkedIn’s strategic roadmap

“Q1 was a solid quarter in which we made meaningful progress against our multi-year strategic roadmap,” said Jeff Weiner, CEO of LinkedIn.

“During the quarter, we maintained steady growth in member engagement while achieving strong financial results.”

Guidance that Q2 revenue would be in the range of US$670m to US$675m and EBITDA would be US$120m was received in a lukewarm fashion by Wall Street, sending shares tumbling 25pc in after-hours trading.

Wall Street analysts had been expecting revenues of US$700m in the current quarter.

“LinkedIn demonstrated continued solid growth during the first quarter,” said Steve Sordello, CFO of LinkedIn. “This performance comes amidst the backdrop of several important strategic investments to better position the business to execute on our long-term roadmap.”

 

John Kennedy is a journalist who served as editor of Silicon Republic for 17 years

editorial@siliconrepublic.com