PayPal shares rose as much as 4% in extended trading on Wednesday after reporting first-quarter earnings that were stronger than analysts had expected.
Here’s how the company did:
- Earnings per share: $1.22, adjusted, vs. $1.01 per share expected in a Refinitiv survey of analysts
- Revenue: $6.03 billion vs. $5.90 billion expected by Refinitiv
- Total payment volume: $285 billion vs. $265 billion expected in a FactSet survey
First quarter net profit rose to $1.10 billion from $84 million a year earlier, and the company added 14.5 million net new active accounts, bringing its total user base to 392 million.
Revenue grew 31% year over year in the quarter that ended Mar. 31, according to a statement. In the year-ago quarter, the pandemic fomented a surge in online shopping, helping to drive record payment volume for the quarter and the full year.
With respect to guidance, for the second quarter PayPal sees adjusted earnings of $1.12 per share on $6.25 billion in revenue. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv had expected $1.10 in adjusted earnings per share on $6.16 billion in revenue.
For the full year, PayPal expects revenue to grow 20% to $25.75 billion, and the company called for adjusted earnings to grow 21% to $4.70. Analysts polled by Refinitiv had been looking for $4.57 in adjusted earnings per share and $25.71 billion in revenue.
Excluding the after-hours move, PayPal stock has risen about 5.9% since the start of the year, while the Nasdaq is up about 5.5% over the same period.
The company is hosting a webcast to discuss its financial results starting at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time.
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