UPDATE 1-NeuStar posts Q1 loss on charge; stock falls

(Recasts, adds details, share movement) May 7 (Reuters) - NeuStar Inc (NSR.N: Quote, Profile, Research), a provider of clearinghouse services to the communications industry, reported a loss for the first quarter and lowered its 2008 earnings outlook to below Wall Street view, sending its shares down as much as 24 percent.

The quarterly results were hurt by a non-cash goodwill impairment charge relating to its next generation messaging business, NeuStar said in a statement.

Shares of the company touched a low of $21.55 in trading after the bell, but recovered to $25.0 later. They had closed at $28.35 Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

NeuStar posted a loss of $4.5 million, or 6 cents a share, compared with earnings of $18 million, or 23 cents a share, last year. Excluding the impairment charge of $29 million, the company earned 31 cents a share.

Revenue rose 20 percent to $117.4 million, driven by increase in infrastructure transactions under its contracts to provide telephone number portability services in the United States.

Analysts on average had expected the company to earn 27 cents a share, before special items, on revenue of $114.4 million, according to Reuters Estimates.

The company expects 2008 earnings to exceed 90 cents a share, on revenue of $500 million to $515 million. NeuStar had earlier expected 2008 earnings to exceed $1.29 a share and revenue to top $515 million.

Analysts were expecting the company to earn $1.31 a share, before items, on revenue of $512.4 million. (Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)