Yahoo earnings continue to disappoint

Yahoo's latest financial results show the internet company is still losing ground in the battle for online advertising.

The fourth-quarter breakdown announced Tuesday is the latest in a succession of ho-hum performances.

The company earned $US296 million ($A282 million), or 24 cents per share, in the October-to-December period. That is down 5 per cent from $312 million, or 24 cents per share, a year earlier. The earnings matched analysts' estimates.

Fourth-quarter revenue dropped 13 per cent from the previous year to $1.32 billion.

After subtracting commissions, Yahoo's revenue totalled $1.17 billion. That was $20 million below analyst projections.

It's the 13th straight quarter that Yahoo's net revenue has declined from the prior year.

Yahoo Inc recently hired former PayPal executive Scott Thompson as CEO in its latest attempt at a turnaround. Thompson is the fourth CEO in less than five years to try to snap Yahoo out of a financial funk that has depressed its stock.

Yahoo dipped 2 cent to $15.67 in extended trading after the report came out. The stock price has fallen by about 40 per cent from its levels five years ago.

As the company ushers in Thompson, Yahoo isn't making any promises for a quick start under his leadership.

Yahoo predicted its net revenue in the first quarter will range from $1.02 billion to $1.1 billion. The mid-point of that target works out to $1.06 billion, unchanged from last year's first quarter.

Yahoo's financial malaise comes as advertisers are shifting more of their budgets to the internet as people spend more of their time on the web.

The biggest beneficiaries of this boom so far have been internet search leader Google Inc and Facebook, the owner of the largest online social network.

While Yahoo continued to struggle during the final three months of last year, Google's revenue rose 25 per cent from the same period in 2010.

As a privately held company, Facebook doesn't disclose its financial results, but data compiled by independent research firms show its website has been luring advertisers away from Yahoo.

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