WebMD lifts guidance for year, shares jump

NEW YORK (AP) -- WebMD Health Corp. on Friday raised its guidance for the year after a stronger-than-expected second quarter, citing healthier demand from advertisers.

In premarket trading, WedMD shares jumped $5.09, or 19 percent, to $32.04. The stock has traded from $13.13 to $31.63 in the past 12 months.

For the quarter ended June 30, the medical website operator said it expects to post a profit of 5 cents per share on $124 million to $125 million in revenue. The company had previously projected a loss amounting to about 1 percent of its revenue for the quarter, which had been expected to total more than $115 million.

For the full year, WebMD said it now expects net income of between $3 million and $11 million on revenue of $485 million to $505 million. The company previously projected a loss of between $1.5 million and $13 million on revenue of $450 million to $470 million.