Source: Qihoo 360 Technology.
China-based network security expert Qihoo 360 Technology (QIHU.DL) just reported preliminary, unaudited results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2014. Following the report, Qihoo shares rose more than 5% in after-hours trading.
Analysts were looking for non-GAAP earnings of $0.34 per American depositary share on $228 million in sales. The company delivered $0.54 of earnings per ADS on $265 million in sales, leaving both analyst targets far behind. These results amount to a 141% year-over-year revenue increase, and year-ago earnings stopped at $0.14 per ADS.
The number of PC-based Qihoo users increased 5% year over year, while smartphone customers nearly doubled. Mobile users now account for the lion's share of Qihoo's total customer base. Daily clicks on 360.cn, Qihoo's Web-based security suite, increased by 58% overall.
"While we maintained our leadership position in key PC-related product categories, we continued to make significant progress in the ever more-important mobile Internet market," Qihoo CEO Hongyi Zhou said in a prepared statement. "We intend to continue to allocate significant resources to the fast-growing mobile Internet market for the foreseeable future."
"While search and mobile monetization are still in their early stages, they are ramping up faster than expected, and are poised to become key drivers of our future growth," added Qihoo president Xiangdong Qi.
For the second quarter, Qihoo expects sales to double year-over-year to at least $300 million. The Street view for this period sits at $270 million.
