(Reuters) - Weibo Corp (O:WB), the company behind China's biggest microblog by users, reported second-quarter revenue above analysts' expectations, helped by a surge in advertising sales.
The company, majority owned by Chinese internet firm Sina Corp (O:SINA), forecast third-quarter revenue between $79 million and $82 million.
Analysts on average were expecting third-quarter revenue at $80.2 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Weibo, which made its listing debut in the United States in April, said advertising and marketing revenue nearly doubled to $59.6 million in the second quarter ended June 30.
But growth in daily active users for the Twitter-like messaging service slowed during the three months to 32 percent from 37 percent in the preceding quarter.
Weibo, in which China's biggest e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd
The microblogging company has come under pressure as China stepped up its censorship of the internet over the past year. This has dealt a heavy blow to microblogs like Weibo where open debate about political issues can land a user in jail.
Net loss attributable to shareholders narrowed to $15.4 million, or 8 cents per share, in the second quarter, from $35.1 million, or 24 cents per share, a year earlier.
On an adjusted basis, the company earned 3 cents per share, inline with expectations.
Revenue more than doubled to $77.3 million, above analysts' average estimate of $75.9 million.
Separately, Sina reported a 19 percent rise in net revenue on Weibo's strong performance and a 29 percent jump in advertising sales.
Weibo's shares were down 4.2 percent in after-market trading, after closing at $21.46 on the Nasdaq on Thursday.
(Reporting by Abhirup Roy in Bangalore and Paul Carsten in Beijing; Editing by Feroze Jamal)