INSTANT VIEW: Yahoo profit beats estimates

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday as it sought to convince investors that Microsoft Corp needs to pay more to buy the company.

COMMENTARY:

JEFFREY LINDSAY, ANALYST, SANFORD C. BERNSTEIN & CO

"This is better than the Street was expecting. This might pose some issues for Microsoft. It's less likely Microsoft would succeed with a lower bid. They wouldn't be able to reduce their price."

MARK MOWREY, SENIOR ANALYST, AL FRANK ASSET MANAGEMENT, LAGUNA BEACH, CALIFORNIA:

"We're not really impressed with this quarter. The company has been very innovative in the Web space but they haven't been able to turn that innovation into the kind of top-line growth you would expect to see compared to what Google is doing. We certainly do not think a Yahoo-Microsoft combination would solve the problem."

JIM FRIEDLAND, ANALYST, COWEN & CO

"Microsoft is breathing a sigh of relief. Even though these are solid results, given long and short term challenges, there's been no overall shift in Yahoo's business. Microsoft's offer is still the best offer on the table ... Could it modestly raise what it's willing to pay to just get the deal done? Yes. There's nothing in the results that would make Microsoft reassess its bid and raise it significantly. The trends are still the trends."

MIKE BINGER, FUND MANAGER AT THRIVENT FINANCIAL IN MINNEAPOLIS, OWNS MICROSOFT AND YAHOO SHARES