Groupon matches quarterly profit forecasts

• Groupon%27s stock has been rising this year on hopes for profitable growth
• Company was expected to earn an adjusted %240.03 a share
• Investors trying to see how Groupon will deal with increasing mobile competition

LOS ANGELES -- Online coupon service Groupon not only reported quarterly results Wednesday that matched expectations, but named a permanent CEO.

Groupon, which offers consumers a chance to prepay for discounted goods and services, reported adjusted earnings of $0.02 a share. That matched estimates, says S&P Capital IQ. Including all charges, the company posted a net loss of a penny a share, also matching expectations.

Meanwhile, the company appointed Eric Lefkofsky as its CEO and named co-interim CEO Ted Leonsis chairman. Lefkofsky was the co-interim CEO. The appointment comes months after Groupon's original CEO Andrew Mason resigned. Lefkofsky is a 44-year-old entrepreneur who had a hand in the creation of Groupon.

Shares of the company jumped 20% on the news in afterhours trading. "It's a reflection on how investors look at the installation of Eric Lefkofsky as permanent CEO," says Thomas White of Macquarie Research. "There are signs of progress."

Analysts had been closely watching the company's revenue, looking for signs of growth. And revenue during the quarter rose 7.1% to $608.7 million, topping the $606.2 million that was expected. Most notably, Groupon is finding success with its marketplace business, where it sells discounted merchandise to consumers on the Website. Additionally, the company reports getting 50% of its North American transactions on mobile devices, up from 30% in June 2012.

Investors are concerned where Groupon will find profitable growth as it looks to expand. There's also increasing competition for discounts to mobile users. Results in the first quarter matched expectations on the bottom line, but the outlook for the second quarter was below expectations.

This year, shares of Groupon have rallied 77.2%. Wednesday shares closed down $0.07 to $8.63.

Going forward, Groupon issued guidance that it expected revenue of between $585 million and $636 million, in line with the $622.4 million expected by analysts. Additionally, the company authorized a repurchase of up to $300 million in common stock.

Investors are hoping "this turnaround, or if you will, evolution of Groupon is on track," White says.