Facebook Posts Upbeat Q1 Earnings, But Revenue Misses Views

reported stronger-than-expected earnings for the first quarter, but the company's sales missed analysts' expectations. The Menlo Park, California-based company posted quarterly net income of $512 million, or $0.18 per share, compared to $642 million, or $0.25 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding certain expenses, the company's earnings rose to $0.42 per share from $0.35 per share. Its revenue climbed 42 percent to $3.54 billion from $2.5 billion. Analysts were expecting a profit of $0.40 per share on revenue of $3.56 billion. Revenue from advertising climbed 46 percent to $3.32 billion in the quarter. GAAP operating margin slipped to 26 percent for the first quarter, versus 43 percent in the year-ago quarter. Non-GAAP operating margin shrank to 52 percent from 57 percent. Daily active users climbed 17 percent year-over-year to 936 million on average for March 2015, while mobile DAUs rose 31 percent to 798 million on average for March 2015. As of March 31, 2015, monthly active users surged 13 percent year-over-year to 1.44 billion, while mobile MAUs climbed 24 percent to 1.25 billion. At the end of the first quarter of 2015, cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $12.41 billion. The average estimate among 239 Estimize users was for earnings of $0.45 per share and revenue of $3.64 billion. "This was a strong start to the year," said Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook founder and CEO. "We continue to focus on serving our community and connecting the world." Facebook shares slipped 1.55 percent to $83.32 in the after-hours trading session.