Yahoo trims 2013 sales outlook

Yahoo Inc trimmed its outlook for 2013 revenue on Tuesday after reporting ongoing reductions in display advertising sales volume and prices in the second quarter, signs that CEO Marissa Mayer's attempts to revive the struggling Internet giant may not produce results in a timely fashion.

The company is now forecasting revenue of USD 4.45 billion to USD 4.55 billion this year, down from USD 4.5 billion to USD 4.6 billion previously. Yahoo also reported that second-quarter net revenue was down slightly at USD 1.071 billion, though it posted adjusted profit that was ahead of Wall Street targets.

Shares of Yahoo, which have gained about 70 percent since Mayer took the helm a year ago, were down 2 percent at USD 26.30 in after-hours trading on Tuesday.

"They had guided to basically expect some sort of growth in the second half of the year. Now that thing is coming down, and you never know, you might end up the year just being flat in terms of revenue," Sameet Sinha, analyst at B. Riley & Co, on the full year net revenue guidance.

Yahoo's net revenue, which excludes fees paid to partner websites, was USD 1.071 billion in the second quarter, within its forecast of USD 1.06 billion to USD 1.09 billion, but below the USD 1.081 billion it posted in the second quarter of 2012.

Yahoo said it earned 35 cents per share, excluding certain items in the second quarter, compared with 30 cents in the year-ago period. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial I/B/E/S were looking for 35 cents in adjusted EPS.

Revenue from Yahoo's display advertising business in the second quarter fell 11 percent from the year before on an adjusted basis, while search advertising revenue was up 5 percent on an adjusted basis.