Tuesday July 27, 4:05 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: TheStreet.com, Inc.
TheStreet.com Reports Record Quarterly Revenues
Quarterly Revenues Increase 192% Year-Over-Year
Recent DLJdirect, Mesirow Financial, NDB and Salon.com Agreements Bode Well For Continued Growth
NEW YORK, July 27 /PRNewswire/ -- TheStreet.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: TSCM - news), a leading Web-based provider of financial and investment news, today announced its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 1999. Net revenues for the second quarter of 1999 totaled $3.3 million, which represents a 192% increase over second quarter 1998 revenues of $1.1 million, and a 64% increase over first quarter 1999 revenues of $2.0 million. The Company reported a second quarter 1999 net loss of $6.8 million or ($0.38) per share compared to $4.7 million or ($0.61) per share in the second quarter of 1998. Excluding a non-cash compensation charge in connection with certain stock options, the Company reported a net loss of $6.2 million, or ($0.30) per share, in the second quarter of 1999 before giving effect to preferred dividends.
Revenue growth for the second quarter of 1999 included substantial increases in both advertising and subscription revenues. Advertising revenues for the most recent quarter totaled $1.7 million, a 197% increase compared with the second quarter 1998 level of $586,000 and a 55% increase over the first quarter 1999 level of $1.1 million. TheStreet.com's attractive reader demographics have enabled it to successfully sign new advertisers, as well as expand existing advertising agreements. During the second quarter of 1999, 83 companies purchased advertising or sponsorships on TheStreet.com site, compared with 44 companies during the first quarter of 1999.
Subscription revenues for the most recent quarter totaled $934,000, a 108% increase compared with the second quarter 1998 level of $448,000 and a 31% increase over the first quarter 1999 level of $712,000. Growth in subscription revenues is primarily attributable to a significant increase in TheStreet.com's subscriber base. At June 30, 1999, the Company's subscription base was approximately 66,000, more than twice the number of subscribers that the Company reported as of December 31, 1998. As growth in the number of subscribers and advertisers demonstrates, awareness and usage of TheStreet.com Web site has been increasing steadily. According to DoubleClick, the monthly average number of unique visitors to the Company's site during the second quarter 1999 was one million, an increase of 51% compared with 661,000 monthly average unique visitors during the first quarter of 1999. DoubleClick measures TheStreet.com's users in connection with delivering advertisements on its Web site.
For the first six months of 1999, net revenues increased 158% to $5.3 million compared with $2.0 million for the first six months of 1998. The Company reported a net loss of $14.0 million, or ($0.97) per share, for the first six months of 1999, compared with a net loss of $8.4 million, or ($1.21) per share, for the first six months of 1998. Excluding a non-cash compensation charge in connection with certain stock options, the net loss for the first six months of 1999 amounted to $12.2 million, or ($0.70), before giving effect to preferred dividends.
''We are very proud of the growth in revenue for the quarter,'' commented Kevin W. English, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. ''We believe we provide a comprehensive range of timely and cutting-edge financial news and commentary that is unmatched by other financial publications and Web sites -- a service that is increasingly recognized and valued by today's investors. We are encouraged about continued strong growth in both advertising sales and our subscriber base. By forming new relationships with other leading firms such as DLJdirect, Mesirow Financial, National Discount Brokers and Salon.com, we have an opportunity to significantly broaden our readership and increase site traffic.''
''Our partnerships with the New York Times and FOX News Network are also moving forward,'' Mr. English added. ''Our joint newsroom with the New York Times is on track to launch in the fourth quarter of this year. This joint newsroom will focus on continuous coverage of business news, and the stories will be available for free at TheStreet.com and at www.nytimes.com for registered users. Additionally, we are very excited about the opportunity to increase the visibility of our site and continue to build our brand and our reputation as a leading provider of comprehensive, thought-provoking financial news through our recently debuted weekly television show on the FOX News Channel,'' concluded Mr. English.
Recent Highlights
-- "TheStreet.com" weekly television show debuted on the FOX News
Channel on July 24th.
-- DLJdirect has recently begun purchasing premium subscriptions to
TheStreet.com for its large account holders and for clients who open
a new DLJdirect brokerage account as part of a joint promotion.
Other DLJdirect clients are given an opportunity to subscribe to
TheStreet.com at a special discount. Additionally, TheStreet.com's
story headlines are being indexed on the DLJdirect Web site.
-- National Discount Brokers agreed to underwrite access to selected
news stories from TheStreet.com for clients at the NDB.com site. NDB
clients also have an opportunity to purchase a full subscription to
TheStreet.com through a special discount offer.
-- Mesirow Financial, one of the largest independent Chicago-based
securities brokerage firms, is purchasing subscriptions through
TheStreet.com Professional Markets Group for its European clients and
plans to introduce the service to its domestic broker-dealer clients
later this year.
-- Young & Rubicam Vice Chairman Linda Srere joined the Company's board
of directors in July 1999.
-- TheStreet.com hired two Institutional Investor editors who developed
the magazine's popular "All-America Research Team" to create analyst
rankings and other research products targeted at clients of
TheStreet.com's Professional Markets Group, as well as individual
investors.
-- TheStreet.com has increased its research tools for subscribers with
the inclusion of industry-leading tools from Market Guide, Thomson
Financial Interactive, IPO Monitor and Multex.com.
-- TheStreet.com and the American Stock Exchange introduced TheStreet.com
E-Finance Index (Amex: XEF - news), a stock index that tracks the
performance of companies involved in online brokerage, online banking,
and online transactions.
-- The Salon.com News Channel now syndicates financial markets news from
TheStreet.com, with direct links to a 30-day free trial subscription
offer.
TheStreet.com will conduct a conference call today at 5:00 p.m. EDT to discuss its second quarter 1999 financial results. The Company welcomes investors, analysts and members of the press to listen to the call over the Internet through Broadcast.com at: broadcast.com street_com/99q2
TheStreet.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: TSCM - news) is publisher of TheStreet.com, a leading Web-based provider of original, timely, comprehensive, and trustworthy financial news and commentary. TheStreet.com ( http:// www.thestreet.com ) was founded in 1996 and is based in New York City, with bureaus in San Francisco and London. TheStreet.com's editorial team, with over 65 experienced financial journalists and two dozen outside contributors, publishes approximately 40 original news stories and commentaries every business day, including columns by James J. Cramer, Herb Greenberg, and Adam Lashinsky. TheStreet.com, Inc. has established strategic alliances with Yahoo!, America Online, The New York Times Co., Fox News Network L.L.C., Intuit, 3 Com, E*TRADE, DLJdirect and other leading companies.
Statements contained in this news release which are not related to historical facts may be deemed forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties (described in the Company's SEC filings) which could cause actual results to differ.
THESTREET.COM, INC.
Condensed Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except per share data)
For the Three Months Ended For the Six Months Ended
June 30, June 30,
1999 1998 1999 1998
(unaudited) (unaudited)
Net revenues:
Advertising revenues $1,740 $586 $2,864 $1,160
Subscription revenues 934 448 1,647 707
Other revenues 586 82 740 167
Total net revenues 3,260 1,116 5,251 2,034
Cost of revenues 2,076 784 3,681 1,490
Gross profit 1,184 332 1,570 544
Operating expenses:
Product development
expenses 1,426 202 2,826 341
Sales and marketing
expenses 3,357 3,692 5,511 6,419
General and
administrative expenses 3,449 1,020 6,435 1,788
Noncash compensation
expense 632 14 1,830 14
Total Operating
expenses 8,864 4,928 16,602 8,562
Loss from operations (7,680) (4,596) (15,032) (8,018)
Interest expense -- (126) -- (383)
Interest income 870 48 1,121 48
Loss before provision
for income taxes (6,810) (4,674) (13,911) (8,353)
Provision for income taxes 19 -- 94 --
Net Loss $(6,829)* $(4,674)* $(14,005)** $(8,353)**
Net loss per share -
basic and diluted $(0.38)* $(0.61)* $(0.97)** $(1.21)**
Weighted average basic
and diluted shares
outstanding 20,459 8,291 17,418 7,246
* Excluding the non-cash compensation charge and the effect of dividends
on preferred stock, net loss for the three months ended June 30, 1999
amounts to ($6,197) or ($0.30) per share, compared to net loss for the
three months ended June 30, 1998 of ($4,660) or ($0.56) per share.
** Excluding the non-cash compensation charge and the effect of dividends
on preferred stock, net loss for the six months ended June 30, 1999
amounts to ($12,175) or ($0.70) per share, compared to net loss for the
six months ended June 30, 1998 of ($8,339) or ($1.15) per share.
THESTREET.COM, INC.
Condensed Balance Sheet
($ in thousands)
June 30, 1999 Dec. 31, 1998
(unaudited)
ASSETS
Current Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents $127,101 $24,612
Accounts receivable - net 1,020 811
Other current assets 795 1,351
Total current assets 128,916 26,774
Property and equipment - net 1,488 600
Other assets 268 207
Total assets $130,672 $27,581
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current Liabilities:
Accounts payable and accrued expenses $4,758 $3,178
Deferred revenue 1,576 676
Other current liabilities 201 203
Total current liabilities 6,535 4,057
Stockholders' equity
Convertible preferred stock -- 21,108
Stockholders' equity 124,137 2,416
Total liabilities and
stockholders' equity $130,672 $27,581
SOURCE: TheStreet.com, Inc.
I've been a Street.com subscriber since it began. I love the site and really would like to see this stock succeed.
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