eBay to trim global workforce by 10%
World's largest online auction site says cuts will affect about 1,000 of its worldwide employees.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The world's largest auction Web site, eBay Inc., announced Monday that it will cut 10% of its global workforce, or about 1,000 employees, citing efforts to streamline its business.
Separately, eBay announced its was acquiring the online payment business Bill Me Later for about $820 million and $125 million in outstanding options, as well as Denmark's leading online classifieds site dba.dk for about $390 million in cash.
The job cuts, which will also affect several hundred temporary workers, are expected to result in pretax restructuring charges of approximately $70 million to $80 million, with the charges predominantly recorded in the fourth quarter of 2008, eBay (EBAY, Fortune 500) said.
"While never an easy decision to make, these reductions will help improve our operations and strengthen our ability to continue investing in growth," John Donahoe, eBay's president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
The company also said it expects to hit the low-end of its third-quarter revenue guidance and exceed its GAAP and non-GAAP earnings-per-share forecast.
Third-quarter revenue for eBay was forecast in the range of $2.1 billion to $2.15 billion, with GAAP earnings per diluted share seen in the range of 30 to 32 cents a share and non-GAAP earnings per diluted share in the range of 39 to 41 cents a share.
Analysts expect the company to earn 41 cents a share on sales of $2.16 billion, according to Thomson Financial.
Quarterly earnings from eBay are expected Oct. 15.
Shares of eBay were down slightly in premarket trading.