eBay falls 8% on weak forecast for holiday season
EBay Inc. shares fell 8% in Wednesday's extended session after the e-commerce company reported third-quarter earnings that beat expectations but issued a cautious forecast for the holiday shopping season. EBay reported net income of $413 million, or 36 cents a share, on sales of $2.22 billion; after adjustments for stock-based compensation and other factors, the company claimed earnings of 45 cents a share. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected eBay to report adjusted earnings of 44 cents a share on revenue of $2.19 billion. For the important fourth quarter, when eBay will be competing with Amazon.com Inc. and other online retailers for shoppers' attention, the company projected adjusted earnings of 52 cents a share to 54 cents a share on revenue of $2.36 billion to $2.41 billion. Analysts expect fourth-quarter adjusted profit of 54 cents a share on sales of $2.4 billion, according to FactSet. EBay shares closed with a 2.8% gain at $32.53 and fell to close to $30 in after-hours trading.
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