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DoubleClick beats, warns
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April 12, 2001: 6:50 p.m. ET
Internet ad firm sees wider losses for 2Q and full year
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Internet advertising firm DoubleClick Inc. reported a first quarter loss that was a penny narrower than expected but warned of wider than anticipated losses in the current quarter.
For the quarter ended March 31, the New York-based company reported a net loss of $10.5 million or 8 cents per share compared with a loss of 11 cents a share a year earlier. Analysts on average expected a loss of 9 cents a share, according to earnings tracker First Call.
First quarter revenue came in at $114.8 million, ahead of analysts estimates, and up 3.6 percent from the year-ago quarter.
But the company projects a loss of between 5 and 7 cents per share for the current quarter compared to estimates for a loss of 2 cents per share.
 For the full year, DoubleClick said it expected a full-year pro forma loss of 18 cents to 22 cents a share. Analysts had been expecting the company to break even by the third quarter of this year. According to First Call, the consensus estimate was for the company to post a profit of 3 cents a share in 2001.
DoubleClick (DCLK: Research, Estimates) stock, which is down sharply from its 52-week high of $93.87, ended Thursday down 61 cents at $12.01 ahead of the report. The shares fell another $1.01 in after-hours trade.
Analysts said the significant reduction in forecasts reflects the fact that the company needed to rethink its strategy, especially in these downtimes.
"In a weak market they are not positioned well," said Michael Legg, analyst at Jefferies & Company.
DoubleClick is one of the largest providers of targeted online advertising services. Using a proprietary technology that enables it to collect and analyze audience behavior, the company provides its customers with services such as predicting which ads will be most effective and serving them to individual Web surfers, measuring the effectiveness of ads and providing data for Web publishers and advertisers.
The company also licenses its technology to third-party publishers and ad agencies and sells ad space across its network of sites, which include Alta Vista, Travelocity and Egghead.com.
Last month, DoubleClick announced plans to cut its workforce by 10 percent and overhaul its media business in a bid to boost its online advertising services. The company said it is making "fundamental changes" to the way it is approaching its media business, from which the bulk of the job cuts will be made. The most recent announcement came just three months after the company laid off 7 percent of its staff.
The New York City-based company is creating two separate networks to handle its U.S. media business: one focusing on branded Web sites, and the other centered on audience reach and targeting of ads. The move reflects DoubleClick's attempt to increase profitability and to focus more on its data and technology businesses. 
- from staff and wire reports
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