Twitter's share price jumped in pre-market trading after what chief executive Jack Dorsey called a "strong finish to the year" as it reported its first ever profit.
Shares leaped as much as 23 per cent before the US market opened after reporting a two per cent rise in revenue in the fourth quarter to $732m, ahead of the $686m analysts had expected.
And net income came in at $91m, compared to a loss of $167m in the same quarter the previous year, signalling its first ever quarterly profit
Monthly active users (MAU) remained flat on the previous quarter at 330m but grew four per cent year-on-year. Daily active users (DAUs), the exact figures for which it does not disclose, grew 12 per cent year-on-year.
For the full-year revenue came in at $2.4bn, down three per cent on the previous year, but losses narrowed to $108m from $457m.
“We’re pleased with our performance in 2017 and our return to revenue growth in the fourth quarter,” said Twitter finance chief Ned Segal.
“Total revenue in the fourth quarter increased two per cent year-over-year, and owned-and-operated advertising revenue increased seven per cent year-over-year, driven by continued strong engagement growth, improvements in our revenue products, improved return for advertisers, and better sales execution.”
The turnaround comes after a concerted effort to improve the product for users, having introduced features such as threaded tweets and doubled the character count from 140 to 280 characters.
Changes should continue to drive audience going forward, the company said in an earnings call.
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CityAM
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