Yahoo! Sale Could Be ‘Positive Catalyst’ for Stock: Analyst

Internet giant Yahoo! (YHOO) is weighing a sale of its core web business, a move that one analyst said may help send shares higher. While a sale would likely appease frustrated activist investors, there are still plenty of questions for the company. ‘Even if we see a sale – which I think could be a positive catalyst for the stock in the short-term, what’s the end goal of the sale and what is the company left with afterwards?’ asked Jasper Lawler, a market analyst with CMC Markets based in London. ‘That’s still a bit uncertain.’ Yahoo! also announced plans to reduce its staff by 15% in its closely watched earnings call on Tuesday night. ‘The unfortunate reality is that staff reductions are necessary at this point, the company needs to cut costs because profits are sliding,’ Lawler added. Yahoo! shares are down 12.6% since the start of the year. TheStreet's Scott Gamm has details from Wall Street.