-- Pinterest (PINS) shares jumped early Tuesday as the image-sharing platform company posted better-than-expected first-quarter results and forecast up to 16% revenue growth year over year for the ongoing three-month period.
For the March quarter, Pinterest's revenue climbed 18% year over year to $1.01 billion, it said late Monday, ahead of the Street's view for $967.2 million. The company expects revenue to come in between $1.13 billion and $1.15 billion for the ongoing quarter, representing annual growth of 14% to 16%. The current consensus on FactSet is for $1.14 billion. The stock spiked 16% in the most recent premarket activity.
Adjusted earnings increased to $0.27 a share in the first quarter from $0.23 last year, which was the average analyst estimate on FactSet.
Overall ad impressions grew 24% in the March quarter, but decelerated versus recent quarters primarily due to the lapping of the initial ramp of monetization in previously under-monetized markets, including from resellers in the rest of the world, "which had contributed to outsized impression growth the prior year," Chief Financial Officer Julia Donnelly said during an earnings call, according to a FactSet transcript.
Ad pricing declined 5% on a yearly basis, but improved sequentially compared with recent quarters, mainly boosted by a higher relative mix of US and Canada ad impressions, Donnelly said on the call.
Revenue in the US and Canada inclined 13% to $750 million, buoyed by retail and emerging verticals, including financial services, according to Donnelly. Revenue in Europe rose 27% to $186 million, driven by retail, while the rest of the world logged a 59% surge in revenue.
The platform's monthly active users increased 11% to 631 million. Average revenue per user improved 6% from the prior-year quarter.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization came in at $206.5 million versus $171.6 million a year ago. For the ongoing quarter, adjusted EBITDA is pegged at $256 million to $276 million.
"As we continue building an (artificial intelligence)-powered ads platform that delivers performance for advertisers, we remain focused on ensuring monetization more fully reflects the strength of our engagement," Chief Executive Bill Ready said in the earnings release.