Nielsen Revenue Jumps 15%, Beats Expectations

Nielsen said its second-quarter revenue shot 15% higher, driven by both its watch and buy segments, according to wsj.com.

The consumer research company beat market expectations for earnings and revenue.

Nielsen provides data ranging from what people watch on television to what they buy in stores. The company's profits have generally improved, as growth in emerging markets helped demand for its data and analysis.

Nielsen's Buy segment, which offers market research for consumer firms, posted 6.6% higher sales to $900 million. The company's Watch business for media producers and advertisers posted 28% higher sales to $694 million.

The company last year closed on a roughly $1.3 billion deal to buy Arbitron, best known for measuring radio's audience, but which also has had some success in figuring out how to measure media usage on the Web and mobile devices.

Mitch Barnes

"Our second quarter results reflect the underlying strength of our Buy and Watch businesses, the successful integration of Arbitron and our steady and consistent business model," said Mitch Barns, chief executive of Nielsen. "We continue to extend our leadership positions in both retail and audience measurement with meaningful innovation and great execution."

For the latest quarter, Nielsen reported a profit of $74 million, or 19 cents a share, compared with $426 million, or $1.12 a share, a year earlier. The sharp year-over-year decline largely stemmed from fees related to recent refinancings of the company's long-term debt, Nielsen said.