Visa's profit, revenue tops estimates on payment volume growth

Visa Inc , the world's largest payments network operator, reported better-than-expected quarterly profit and revenue due to higher payment volume growth and cross-border volumes, sending the company's shares up 3 percent in extended trading.
The company's total payments volume rose 39 percent to $1.8 trillion on a constant dollar basis in the first quarter, far exceeding the 11 percent growth in the year-ago quarter.
Visa's cross-border volumes rose 140 percent on a constant dollar basis in the quarter ended Dec. 31.
This is Visa's first earnings report since new chief executive, Alfred Kelly, took over from Charles Scharf on Dec. 1.
"Visa's fiscal 2017 is off to a terrific start with a strong first quarter of revenue and earnings growth driven by accelerating growth in payments volume, cross-border commerce and processed transactions in virtually all regions around the world," said Kelly.
Under Scharf, who had been Visa's CEO since 2012, the company saw a near 45 percent jump in annual revenue. Scharf orchestrated the company's reunion with Visa Europe.
The company's net income rose to $2.07 billion, or 86 cents per Class A share, in the latest quarter from $1.94 billion, or 80 cents per share, a year earlier.
Analysts on average were expecting a profit of 78 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Visa's net operating revenue rose 25 percent to $4.46 billion, exceeding analysts' expectations of $4.29 billion.
The San Francisco-based company's shares were up about 3 percent at $84.70 after the bell on Thursday. Up to Thursday's close, they had risen about 12 percent in the past one year.
MasterCard, the world's second-biggest payments processor, reported a lower-than-expected quarterly revenue last week, hurt by rise in rebates, incentives and a stronger U.S. dollar.