Earnings Preview: IAC to report 2Q results

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - IAC/InterActiveCorp, the Internet company run by billionaire Barry Diller that includes dating site Match.com and online city guide Citysearch, reports its second-quarter results on Wednesday before the market opens.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Investors will be looking for growth from IAC's main search business. This includes properties such as Citysearch and search engine Ask.com.

In the last quarter, the search unit comprised much of IAC's growth - a big change from 2009, when a slump in the online advertising market hampered the business for the majority of the year.

Investors will also be keeping an eye on IAC's Match business, which includes dating sites Match.com and Chemistry.com. Revenue in the segment has declined for several quarters since it sold Match Europe last June, but its number of paid Match subscribers has increased year-over-year for several quarters.

WHY IT MATTERS: Revenue reported by IAC's search business will help paint a picture of how the online advertising market is performing so far this year.

Already this quarter, competitor Google Inc. reported growth in online ads, which stands to benefit Ask.com since it depends on Google for much of its search advertising revenue.

Yahoo Inc. also reported online advertising growth, though it was much less than Google's and the company also said that several major advertisers abruptly lowered their spending during the quarter.

WHAT'S EXPECTED: Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expect an adjusted profit of 20 cents per share on $382.6 million in revenue.

LAST YEAR'S QUARTER: In the year-ago quarter, IAC earned $40.8 million, or 28 cents per share, on $340 million in revenue. Excluding special items, its profit totaled 7 cents per share.