New York – Despite a steep drop in ad revenue, shares of AOL (NYSE: AOL)
gained nearly 6% by midday Wednesday as the Internet company reported sharply
higher third-quarter earnings than a year ago.
The company’s stock price was up
5% in mid-day trading on Wednesday.
Net income of $171.6 million — up from $74
million — received a large boost from the company’s sale of assets such as its
ICQ instant messaging unit and investment in travel site Kayak.
Revenue,
however, dropped 26% to $563.5 million, due in large part to a 27% decline in
ad sales.
The company also cited a reduction of its European operations, as
well as its sale of social network Bebo earlier this year.
The company had
about 4.1 million dial-up subscribers remaining at the end of the third
quarter, down 1.4 million from the same point in 2009.
Related Links:
http://corp.aol.com/2010/11/03/aol-reports-q3-earnings
