Yahoo Inc, the Internet search site with 98 million registered users, is expected to report its first quarterly profit under Chief Executive Officer Terry Semel after six straight losses.
Yahoo earned about US$0.02 a share in the second quarter on sales of US$215 million, according to surveyed analysts. That compares with a year-earlier loss of US$0.09 a share on revenue of US$182.2 million.
Shareholders say Semel, who became CEO in May last year after serving as co-chief executive of the Warner Bros film studio, must boost revenue closer to the fourth-quarter 2000 peak of US$310.9 million. His challenge is to increase fees for services such as job listings and to revive advertising sales in a sluggish economy, investors say.
"Developing a revenue base that extends beyond advertising is something they need to do," said George Gilbert, who helps manage the Northern Technology Fund, owner of 440,000 Yahoo shares as of March. "I'm looking for [Semel] to come up with an answer for that, and then execute on it."
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