(Reuters) – Mastercard Inc reported a higher first-quarter profit on Thursday, buoyed by a surge in cross-border spending that helped payment volumes climb.
The company’s profit rose to $2.6 billion, or $2.68 per share, for the three months ended March 31 compared to $1.8 billion, or $1.83 per share, a year earlier.
Even as new variants of the coronavirus threaten to upend travel recovery, Mastercard has continued to see a jump in cross border spending.
Excluding one-time costs, the New York-based company reported earnings of $2.76 per share. Analysts on average had expected $2.17 per share, according to Refinitiv.
It was not immediately clear if the reported numbers were comparable to estimates.
Mastercard’s net revenue rose 28% on a currency neutral basis to $5.2 billion.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)
