LinkedIn’s stock jumps on news of stellar quarter

Professional social network LinkedIn handily exceeded Wall Street’s expectations with its third quarter 2012 earnings report.

The nine-year-old company made $252 million in revenue, $2.3 million in net income, and posted Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share of $0.22 for the quarter. It also closed the quarter with more than 187 million members. The market is rewarding the beat with fervid after-hours trading, pushing LinkedIn’s stock up by more than 7 percent.

“LinkedIn had a strong third quarter with all of our key operating and financial metrics showing solid growth,” CEO Jeff Weiner said in a statement. “The last few months mark the most significant period of product development in the company’s history. This accelerated pace of innovation is fundamental to our goal of driving greater engagement on the LinkedIn platform.”

The stellar third quarter was once again fueled by continued growth to the company’s hiring products, now called “Talent Solutions.” The recruiter- and employer-friendly products brought in 55 percent of total revenue for the quarter, or $138.4 million. Revenue from Talent Solutions was up 95 percent year-over-year.

LinkedIn’s other moneymakers, Marketing Solutions and Premium Subscriptions, also showed strong annual growth. The professional social network’s marketing-related products contributed $64 million to the bottom line, or 60 percent year-over-year increase, though the amount is only about $1 million more than what LinkedIn made in the previous quarter. Revenue from paid subscriptions was up 74 percent year-over-year at $49.6 million, or 20 percent of total revenue.

So far, Wall Street is loving the news. LinkedIn closed Thursday slightly down at $106.85, but is rallying in after-hours trading. The stock price is hovering around $115 per share, more than 7 percent up, at the time of this report.

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