J2 Global shares rise as subscriber revenue boosts 1Q profit

Net profit rose 2.4 percent to $16.8 million, or 35 cents per share, compared with $16.4 million, or 32 cents per share, in the 2007 first quarter.

Sales rose 8 percent to $58.6 million compared with $54.2 million last year.

Subscriber revenue rose 13.8 percent to $57.2 million.

BMO Capital Markets analyst Steven Freitas said J2 had excellent execution in a challenging environment.

Freitas even saw some signs of recovery from customers in the lending and mortgage industries, which are a significant J2 business segment.

Lending and mortgage fax volumes grew modestly quarter-over-quarter following three consecutive quarters of sequential revenue decline, he said.

"The revenue growth from J2's credit sensitive customers was encouraging and gives us more confidence that its guidance is achievable," Freitas added.

He raised his 2008 earnings per share estimate to $1.62 from $1.60 and initiated a 2009 earnings-per-share estimate of $1.90.

Friedman, Billings, Ramsey analyst Daniel Ives remained positive on the company but was less optimistic.