Lynda's Upside and First 10% Customer to Drive Growth at LinkedIn (LNKD) - Susquehanna
Shyam Patil from Susquehanna published an earnings recap on LinkedIn (NASDAQ: LNKD) this morning citing Lynda's first 10% customer and leverage in the company's operating model.
The revenue beat combined with lower opex drove EBITDA 35% ($54 million) above us and 36% ($55 million) above consensus, and EPS 63% above us and 72% above consensus.
Trends were generally solid all around, and LNKD called out Europe as a notable strong performer. These results point to continued runway for the core hiring solutions business with particular optimism heading into 4Q and 2016, as the product pipeline is the strongest in LNKD’s history.
Lynda generated $41 million, and is now on pace to reach $100 million for the year (up from $90 million previously). Cross-selling efforts are also paying off, as lynda signed the largest deal in its history with an existing LNKD customer for ~$4 million.
The analyst reiterated a Positive Rating and raised its PT to $300 (from $270). A clean beat-and-raise increases our confidence in the earnings revision story, especially as many of the company’s key growth initiatives are starting to materialize.
For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on LinkedIn click here. For more ratings news on LinkedIn click here.
Shares of LinkedIn closed at $217.00 yesterday.