IAC reports double-digit growth in online sales
IAC/InterActiveCorp, No. 26 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, reported 2% growth in its retail sales in the third quarter. The company said there was double digit growth in online sales, but did not provide more specific data.
The company’s varied businesses include Home Shopping Network, Shoebuy.com, several catalog brands, Lending Tree, Ticketmaster and search engine Ask.com. In most of those businesses, the trends are good, says chairman and CEO Barry Diller, “and particularly so at HSN, where I believe that Mindy Grossman and her team have now become acclimated and are beginning to demonstrate the great retailing smarts that we knew they were capable of.” Grossman was named CEO of IAC Retailing in April 2006.
IAC’s retailing operations accounted for $700.4 million in revenue in the third quarter, up 2% from $686.2 million in the same period a year ago. Operating income was down 26% to $37.4 million from $50.3 million; the company cited lower gross margins and higher expenses.
Management pointed to “strong gains” at Shoebuy, but did not provide details. HSN revenue grew by 5%, excluding America’s Store, which ceased operations in April. The number and average spend of frequent HSN customers grew while the number of active customers was flat. The average price point was higher and units shipped were up slightly, IAC said, without providing details.
Traffic to IAC web sites increased 7% during the third quarter, to a three-month average of 61.0 million unique visitors per month, compared with 56.9 million during the same quarter last year, according to Internet measurement service Nielsen Online.
IAC as a whole reported revenue of $1.52 billion, a 7.4% increase from $1.41 billion in the third quarter of 2006. Net income was $71.8 million, down 4.2% from $74.9 million. The company’s overall results were hurt by Lending Tree, which has been impacted by the crisis in the mortgage market.
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