Perion slides as ad tech firm slashes 2024 forecast on Microsoft Bing changes

Perion Network

08/04/2024 13:28

April 8 (Reuters) - Perion Network's  PERI.O 
U.S.-listed shares plunged more than 35% premarket on Monday,
after the Israeli ad tech firm cut its annual revenue forecast,
driven by a drop in search advertising due to changes made by
Microsoft's  MSFT.O  Bing search engine. 
    The company's agreement with Microsoft, which was renewed in
2020, accounted for 35% of its revenue in 2022, according to its
annual report.
    Changes in ad pricing and other mechanisms implemented by
Microsoft Bing in its search distribution marketplace led to a
decline in search advertising activity, Perion said on Monday.
    Its market capitalization is set to fall by more than $380
million to about $613 million, if the premarket losses hold.
    Perion said it expects first quarter revenue of $157
million, below Wall Street estimates of $175.5 million,
according to six analysts polled by LSEG.
    The company's stock fell to $13.17 in trading before the
bell. The shares are down about 32% so far this year, pressured
by competition from Big Tech firms including Alphabet's
 GOOGL.O  Google, and Facebook-parent Meta Platforms  META.O .
    The company now expects 2024 revenue in the range of $590
million to $610 million, against its prior expectation of $860
million to $880 million.
    Perion expects to announce its first quarter results on May
8.

 (Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank
Dhaniwala)
 ((Jaspreet.Singh@thomsonreuters.com; https://twitter.com/i_jass;))