Shares of Sohu.com
Revenue soared 20% to $164.1 million, with adjusted earnings clocking in at $1.16 a share. Analysts were banking on a non-GAAP profit of $0.90 a share on $156.8 million in revenue.
There was a 22% uptick in its flagship online brand advertising business. Sohu's online gaming arm -- the result of its majority stake in Changyou
Sohu's biggest push came from its 134% surge in search advertising, but check your euphoria at the door. Sohu's Sogou engine is still a bit-part player in this market. Yes, that's a healthier year-over-year gain than market Chinese leader Baidu
Now, a strong report isn't enough to propel a stock higher these days. Sohu's stock has nearly doubled since bottoming out this summer, so one can argue that a strong quarter was already discounted by Mr. Market.
Well, Sohu's guidance for the current quarter -- calling for non-GAAP net income between $1.10 and $1.15 a share -- is also well ahead of where Wall Street was perched.
Changyou is the first of the major online gaming companies in China to report this quarter. Sohu's strong performance there, along with its outlook for another sequential top-line gain, bode well for Shanda Games
Baidu rocked last week, but it's always been a speedster. Yesterday's strong Sohu report, on the other hand, should inspire investors in China's slower, smaller, and more finicky dot-com players.
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