One day ahead of Yahoo’s second quarter earnings report, a financial firm has suggested that investors give the company their support – and their money. ThinkEquity upgraded its rating on Yahoo from "Hold" to "Buy."
The imminent earnings call was the first reason for that move. ThinkEquity predicted that Yahoo will report $1.162 in net revenue, versus a consensus estimate of $1.156 billion. The operating income forecasts are then $187 million versus $178 million, and in terms of GAAP EPS, ThinkEquity is looking for Yahoo to report $0.15 instead of $0.14.
Next, in an official note, ThinkEquity analysts Aaron Kessler, Robert Coolbrith, and Qi (Henry) Guo gave five more reasons for the upgrade, citing "improving display monetization," "stabilizing search share combined with successful Microsoft search integration," "share repurchases," improved engagement, and "improved cost structure."
That’s a rather long list, which should please Yahoo fans. Plus, the company’s stock rose 1.34 percent today, and that puts it ahead of the Dow (which gained 0.56 percent) and the Nasdaq (which rose 0.88 percent).
Yahoo’s shareholders could be in for a nice week, then, if nothing unforeseen happens.
Of course, we’ll be sure to report on the situation either way when Yahoo releases its earnings report tomorrow after the market closes.
