LinkedIn reports revenue gains ahead of Microsoft merger

Despite selling out for a cool $26.2 billion two months back, LinkedIn still has a job to do.

And it did just fine. 

The professional social network reported second-quarter earnings that beat analysts' expectations in revenue, driven by growth in new members and subscribers. 

But its results also included its largest net loss since going public in 2011. LinkedIn reported a loss of 89 cents per share compared to 53 cents the year prior. Excluding expenses, earnings per share of $1.13 would have beaten expectations of 78 cents per share. 

The stock increased by 0.25 percent in after-hours trading. 

LinkedIn posted revenue of $933 million, up 31 percent year over year. That figure beat expectations of $898 million.

Talent solutions — a package of recruiting tools and LinkedIn's biggest revenue stream — pulled in $597 million, a 35 percent increase year over year. 

LinkedIn credited sponsored content with bolstering its growth in marketing solutions, which brought in $181 million in the quarter.

The network also reported 450 million members for the second quarter. That's up from 433 million in April and a 18 percent increase from the year prior. 

Even with the dominance of Facebook for consumers' attention on mobile, more people are spending more time on LinkedIn. Pageviews per visitor are up 21 percent year over year. 

“Continued product innovation drove increased levels of engagement, and strengthened our enterprise offerings," LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner said in a statement. 

LinkedIn did not share outlook on the rest of 2016 due to the pending merger. The deal, the largest for Microsoft and in recent history of tech company mergers, still needs to gain regulatory approval.

Microsoft, who reportedly beat Facebook, Google and Salesforce on the deal, paid about a 50 percent premium on the company's share price. LinkedIn's stock and outlook had been falling and disappointing investors over the last year. 

"We believe joining forces with Microsoft enables us to further accelerate and scale our ability to deliver value and create economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce," Weiner said.

LinkedIn has been releasing new features prior to the merger. On Tuesday, the company announced its group of 500 influencers could post videos to the platform. 

Because who doesn't like video.