Expect A Strong Q1 Out Of Criteo, KeyBanc Says

KeyBanc expects Criteo SA (ADR) CRTO to report strong first quarter results and recommends CRTO as its best SMID-cap Internet idea, driven by continued share gains and incremental growth opportunities like MMS, China, email and search. Paris, France-based Criteo, which helps online retailers provide customized display advertisements, will release its first quarter numbers on May 4. Wall Street analysts, on average, expect earnings of $0.34 a share on revenue of $157.06 million for the March quarter. "Coming off a strong Q4 and record performance in our quarterly cookie checks in Q1, we are expecting strong results from Criteo," analyst Evan Wilson wrote in a note. Wilson, who has an Overweight rating on the stock, expects first quarter revenue of $160 million and EBITDA of $43.5 million. Wilson said his cookie checks showed that Criteo crossed the 60 percent adjusted share mark for the first time, a proof of Criteo's "best in class" solution and indicates that the company "will continue to win share from competitors." Though a choppy earnings season triggered concerns over the health of display ad market, the analyst said he hasn't seen any evidence of cut in ad spend from e-commerce and travel advertisers, which form the bulk of Criteo's business. "We believe the beat and raise last quarter, record cookie checks and a multitude of growth opportunities set up Criteo for upside throughout the year," Wilson added. ADRs of Criteo were up 0.28 percent to $42.69, while Wilson has a $53 price target.