Shares of Marchex Inc. jumped Wednesday after the local search and advertising company said its swung to a first-quarter loss, but its revenue and adjusted earnings beat analysts' expectations.
Marchex shares rose $1.39, or 13.5 percent, to $11.70. In the past year, the stock has traded between $7.42 and $16.92.
Late Tuesday, Seattle-based Marchex reported a first-quarter loss of $1.2 million, or 3 cents per share, compared with a profit of $547,698, or a penny per share, in the year-ago quarter.
On an adjusted basis, Marchex earned 8 cents per share in the first quarter, compared with 11 cents per share, a year earlier.
Revenue rose to $37 million from $34.2 million, with $22.3 million in revenue from its local advertising services and $14.7 million from its local search network.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected adjusted profit of 7 cents per share on $35.6 million in revenue.
Marchex said operating expenses rose 14.7 percent to $39.1 million, mostly due to an increase in service costs.
The company predicted second-quarter revenue of $37 million _ a bit higher than the $36.6 million analysts expect.
Several analysts reacted positively to the company's report, with a few increasing their price targets for Marchex shares.
In a note to investors, RBC Capital Markets analyst Ross Sandler, who rates the stock "Sector Perform," raised his price target to $12 from $9. He also increased his 2008 and 2009 estimates for Marchex's EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
"We think that expectations are finally in the right place for Marchex, and the company has turned the corner from the problems back in (the second half of 2007)," the analyst said.
Sandler said he has been "warming up to the Marchex story for the past few months," and the first quarter showed "another consistent performance."
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