TheStreet’s earnings, revenue lower than expected

TheStreet.com reported a first-quarter loss and revenue that were both lower than expected.

The New York-based financial news company reported revenue of $16.1 million, which was about $750,000 lower than expected, and a net loss of $3.4 million, or 10 cents per share, which was 3 cents per share away from analyst expectations.

Subscription revenue was $6.3 million, down 14 percent from a year ago, but media revenue was $2.6 million, up 11 percent. The company has just began to ramp up European editorial coverage for The Deal, adding several editorial staffers in London at the end of the first quarter.

“This is the beginning of our transition year,” said Larry Kramer, chairman and interim CEO, in a statement.  “We have launched product improvement projects in all of our businesses, and begun to add resources in technology, sales and content that will give us the products we need to grow.

“New technology investment and significant improvement in content, including this month’s launch of our European news operations, will provide new opportunities for growth by the end of this year,” he added.

Kramer added that the company is evaluating several strong candidates to become CEO.

First quarter 2016 page views increased 43 percent when compared to the first quarter of 2015, and increased 14 percent when compared to the fourth quarter of 2015.

Read the earnings release here.