WSJ: "Groupon's Accounting Lingo Gets Scrutiny"

While it isn't unusual for companies to use nonstandard financial measurements, Ben Strubel, a portfolio manager with Strubel Investment Management, a money management firm in Lancaster, Penn., says he has "never encountered" the one Groupon is using. "In essence Groupon is asking investors to look at their profit before any expenses," says Mr. Strubel, who doesn't plan to invest in the IPO and has no intention of shorting the stock. "It's not a surprise they want investors to focus on measures that don't include expenses since their expenses have been rising."