AOL Rallies After Posting Impressive Quarter

Shares of AOL (NYSE: AOL) gapped higher at the open on Friday, trading up nearly 10%. Later in the session, shares gave back much of their gain, but were still up over 7%.AOL reported fourth quarter earnings per share of $0.55, more than the $0.53 analysts had been anticipating. Revenue also beat expectations, at $599.50 million -- more than the $566.70 million consensus analyst estimate.On the call, AOL's CEO Tim Armstrong focused on the company's advertising efforts. He also noted the potential for AOL Music and AOL's video efforts -- AOL's videos are second only to Youtube in views.One asset Armstrong was asked about was AOL's MapQuest. Although it may have faded in popularity in recent years, it still remains the number two mapping property in the U.S. and Armstrong considers it to be a “very big asset.”Although its been a bumpy ride since Armstrong took the reigns in early 2009, shareholders have seen a solid return, including last fall's special dividend. After AOL sold a patent portfolio to Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) valued at over $1 billion, the company opted to return most of the capital to shareholders through a special dividend and buyback program.Shares of AOL traded near $33.60 on Friday.