What happened

Shares of QuinStreet (QNST 2.12%) were surging 18.3% higher at 12:13 p.m. ET on Thursday after reporting earnings that beat analyst expectations following the stock market's close yesterday.

QuinStreet is a marketing products and technology provider for information-intensive businesses. Fiscal second-quarter results beat Wall Street forecasts on the top and bottom line.

Person pointing to rising stock chart.

Image source: Getty Images.

So what

The revenue and smaller-than-expected loss by QuinStreet was driven in part by an increase in auto insurance clients spending more. This was previously predicted, as the marketer had guided toward an uptick occurring in January due to loss ratios being reset, carriers raising rates, and consumers shopping around for a better deal in response to the higher rates.

QuinStreet generates 72% of its annual revenue from financial services clients and 27% from home services. 

CEO Doug Valenti said in a statement: "Our commitment to continue to invest in long-term initiatives through the transitory challenges in the insurance market is paying off. Revenue and margins are rebounding quickly. We expect them to continue to ramp and that our long-term prospects have never been better."

Now what

Shares of QuinStreet have been steadily rising over the past year and are 20% higher in 2023, though they're still about 15% below their all-time high hit back in early 2021.

The marketing firm is looking for third-quarter revenue to be a record of between $160 million and $170 million, with adjusted EBITDA between $3 million and $7 million as the auto insurance market picks up steam.