MasterCard 4Q profit climbs 3 per cent

MasterCard's fourth-quarter earnings climbed 3 per cent as higher revenue countered a jump in expenses, but results missed expectations.
The Purchase, New York, payment networks company earned USD 623 million, or 52 cents per share, in the three months that ended Dec. 31. That compares with USD 605 million, or 49 cents per share, a year earlier.
Earnings in the most recent quarter totaled 57 cents per share, not counting a litigation-related charge.
Revenue climbed 12 per cent to USD 2.13 billion, as consumers hit stores for holiday shopping.
Analysts anticipated adjusted earnings of 60 cents per share on USD 2.14 billion in revenue.

MasterCard said its revenue climbed partly because of a 13 per cent increase in processed transactions to 10.4 billion and a 14 per cent increase in gross dollar volume.

Operating expenses, which included a USD 95 million provision for a litigation settlement, rose 21 percent to USD 1.21 billion.
Rival Visa Inc., along with card issuers American Express Co. And Discover Financial Services, reported higher card spending during the holiday season.
MasterCard Inc.'s stock was down 5.6 per cent, or USD 4.43, to USD 75.33 in premarket trading. The stock had already dropped 4.5 per cent, as of yesterday, since closing 2013 at USD 83.55.