AOL Beats Profit Expectations, But Falls Short On Revenue

AOL Inc. reported on Wednesday a fourth-quarter net profit that rose to $59.6 million, or 73 cents a share, from $36 million, or 43 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Excluding non-recurring items, earnings per share rose to 92 cents from 64 cents, beating the FactSet consensus analyst estimate of 72 cents. Revenue increased 5% to $710.3 million, below analyst forecasts of $721.8 million. Global advertising revenue rose 8% to $562.2 million while subscription revenue fell 5% to $148.1 million, compared with analyst projections of $557.9 million and $148.2 million, respectively. The stock, which was inactive in premarket trade, has slipped 0.9% over the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained 1.4%.