Internet & Media

Yahoo's financial results came in lower than analyst expectations for revenue and net income, but the stock is trading higher after hours. Here are highlights from what Chief Executive Jerry Yang, President Sue Decker, and Chief Financial Officer Blake Jorgensen have to say about the second quarter during the company's conference call.

• To recap, here are Yahoo's numbers: Revenue excluding commissions increased 8 percent to $1.346 billion, shy of the $1.37 billion analysts had expected. Net income was 10 cents per share, excluding items, compared to 11 cents expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson … Read more

Yahoo's earnings for its second quarter came in 1 cent lower than expectations, with net income declining 19 percent and revenue a bit light as well, but the company called the quarter "strong."

Using generally accepted accounting principles, the company's net income decreased 19 percent from $161 million in the year-earlier quarter to $131 million. But excluding various charges, the Internet pioneer reported earnings of 10 cents per share, less than the 11 cents per share that analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected.

Revenue increased 8 percent to $1.346 billion, excluding commissions called traffic acquisition … Read more

Some business sectors are definitely hurt by the current economic downturn, but major Internet sites dependent on advertising have been holding serious trouble at bay. Tuesday afternoon, investors should get a better idea whether the problems are hitting Yahoo.

The company is set to report results for its second quarter after stock market trading closes in the afternoon. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect earnings per share of 11 cents on revenue of $1.37 billion.

But there is pessimism in the air. "Comments last week from Valueclick and Microsoft indicate the broader economic downturn is affecting online ads, … Read more

After months of exchanging barbs with investor activist Carl Icahn, Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang has told employees he's looking forward to the "fresh perspective" Icahn will bring as a board member.

Just last week, Icahn had officially launched his proxy fight against Yahoo. On Monday morning, a settlement with Icahn ended it all.

Monday's note contrasts with an e-mail Yang penned last week that warned employees to brace for an especially contentious period leading up to the August 1 shareholders meeting. The latest missive, posted Monday evening in a corporate blog and noted in a Securities … Read more

Updated 10:45 a.m. PDT, with comments from the M&A director of research at RiskMetrics Group.

Microsoft may be the biggest winner in the proxy fight settlement between Yahoo and activist investor Carl Icahn, whose peace accord was announced Monday.

With its ally Icahn and two members of Icahn's former dissident proxy slate getting three seats on Yahoo's expanded 11-member board as part of the settlement, Microsoft may find a sympathetic ear on any future buyout or asset acquisition proposals for Yahoo's search business, said sources. That, as a result, could push Microsoft to … Read more

Updated 9:16 a.m. PDT with Chief Executive Jerry Yang's comment about the site.

Yahoo is using its considerable Internet clout to promote its "proxy facts" Web site devoted to countering investor Carl Icahn's attempt to replace the company's board of directors with his own picks.

The company's main page includes a large link to the proxy fight site just below the main advertisement on the right side of the page, showing a purple panel that reads, "We have a couple of exclamation points to make." Given the heavy traffic to … Read more

In a new letter to shareholders, Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang and Chairman Roy Bostock claim that the latest proposal from Microsoft and investor Carl Icahn "will destroy stockholder value at Yahoo."

The letter, released Thursday, complains that Icahn only invested in Yahoo two months ago, and is just looking for a deal to "recover his investment and get back his money quickly, even a deal that does not provide full and fair value to you."

The letter is part of the months of sniping among the companies, investors, and other interested parties, all leading up to … Read more

Updated at 1:36 p.m. PDT with a report on AOL executives meeting with Microsoft.

Yahoo and Microsoft have both accelerated their respective deal-making talks with Time Warner's AOL, as a proxy fight looms less than three weeks away between Yahoo and investor activist Carl Icahn, according to a source familiar with the discussions.

"The ongoing talks between all the companies have recently picked up," said the source.

That may come as no surprise, given that Yahoo over the weekend rejected a sweetened Microsoft offer to buy just its search assets and the board of directors … Read more

Yahoo's share price has been hit with an 8.6 percent decline over the past two days, signaling investors may be less than thrilled with Microsoft's sweetened offer to buy the Internet pioneer's search assets.

That may be problematic for investor activist Carl Icahn, who is hoping to use Microsoft's sweetened bid as a means to entice Yahoo investors to vote for his slate of dissident directors, as he seeks to oust Yahoo's current board of directors in a proxy battle.

Yahoo closed at $21.54 a share on Tuesday, down 8.6 percent since … Read more