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Westlake Village-based digital marketing firm Conversant stayed on track with earnings but slightly missed Wall Street’s revenue targets as it committed to returning $150 million more in cash to shareholders through stock buybacks.
Conversant will align all of its business units — including a new SET Media video unit that it acquired for $26 million in cash and $4 million in stock days after its name change — around the goal of direct conversations between advertisers and consumers.
Shares of Westlake Village-based Conversant gained sharply in after-hours trading on Feb. 11 as the company delivered profits that beat Wall Street’s expectations and announced big changes designed to lead to growth.
Online advertising firm ValueClick has changed its name to Conversant and recalibrated its business model to focus on helping marketers better target individual consumers.
Westlake Village-based online advertising firm ValueClick is selling its owned-and-operated websites to the parent company of Dictionary.com, Match.com, Ask.com and About.com. The aggregate purchase price was $80 million, according to a regulatory filing.
The $1.6 billion Westlake Village-based digital advertising company has been under fire from investors — and trial attorneys — for its reliance acquisitions to produce revenue growth. It has also faced criticism of the steep losses it has taken on selling off business lines that didn’t work out.