Dice Holdings’ Q3 revenues off one-third; beats Street

Dice Holdings’ revenue declined 33 percent in the third quarter, compared to the same quarter of last year. In the U.S., the company operates Dice.com for technology jobs, AllHealthCareJobs.com, other niche recruitment sites and the international EFinancialCareers.com.

Dice Holdings trades as DHX on the NYSE. Third-quarter revenues declined to $26.7 million. Operating expenses were reduced by 27 percent in Q3, or $7.8 million, compared to the same quarter of 2008.

In a quarter that showed positive growth in technology and healthcare segments, how is it that Dice Holdings showed a year-over revenue loss of a full third? Revenues weren’t broken out by business unit, but here’s a clue: Globally, financial careers haven’t yet seen a rebound, and London-based EFinancialCareers.com, which operates 22 country sites, are likely taking a beating. Dice Holdings’ release mentions only a “significant decline in recruitment activity which impacted both Dice.com and EFinancialCareers.” The release also noted that the U.S. dollar’s decline against the British pound sterling impacted revenues negatively by about $900,000, or 2 percent from Q308.

The drop in operating expenses was driven by the decline in “sales and marketing expense” (read “commissions”) of $6.1 million, or 42 percent from the same quarter of 2008.

Still, operating income ended up in the black — $5.9 million — although it less than half what it was in Q308. Net income was $3 milion, or 5 cents earnings per diluted share. All of which beat Wall Street estimates and pleased investors. Stock was trading at almost $7 per share on the news, better than twice the share price back in March.