ValueClick, the Westlake Village online advertising company, said this week it expects second-quarter revenue to come in at the high end of its previously announced guidance of $155 million to $160 million. The company also expects adjusted earnings before interest, taxes and amortization to come in at the high end of its previously announced guidance of $46 to $48 million. The announcement follows a downgrade of the company’s stock by Piper Jaffray Cos. Tuesday, which was followed by a steep 7.2 percent drop in the value of ValueClick shares. Shares of the stock soared 16.24 percent today to $16.39 a share. ValueClick said its media segment revenue growth will be at or above previously-announced guidance for the quarter. The company plans to announce results for the quarter ending June 30 during the week of July 30. The company also announced that since May 2, it has repurchased approximately 5.9 million shares of its own stock for approximately $99.6 million. ValueClick’s board of directors has authorized a $100 million increase to the repurchase program. ValueClick expects to fund the buyback program through free cash flow and its credit facility, which was increased by $50 million. “We are executing on our strategic initiatives, which is allowing us to build on our tradition of returning capital to our shareholders,” James R. Zarley, chief executive officer of ValueClick, said in a prepared statement. “Our increased credit facility and stock repurchase program speak to our conviction about our ability to capture the opportunities in front of us.” The stock dropped earlier in the week after a downgrade by Piper Jaffray, which said ValueClick shares were vulnerable to an “acceleration of impression buying via online exchanges.” The company said this is likely to lead advertising buyers to shift their purchases away from ad networks such as ValueClick. Judy Temes
