(Bloomberg) -- Mastercard Inc. reported profit that beat analysts’ estimates, helped by a boost in cross-border transactions.
The company posted adjusted earnings per share of $3.89 in the third quarter, topping analyst predictions for $3.73. Global purchase volume climbed 11% from a year earlier on a local-currency basis to $2.058 trillion, surpassing analyst forecasts of $2.054 trillion.
“These results reflect healthy consumer spending and ongoing solid demand for our value-added services and solutions,” Chief Executive Officer Michael Miebach said in a statement Wednesday.
Shares of the company were little changed at $509.48 at 10:19 a.m. in New York. They’ve gained 20% this year.
Mastercard’s results show consumers are continuing to spend as interest rates begin to fall and inflation comes down further. Visa Inc., the world’s biggest payments network, this week posted fiscal fourth-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street expectations as cross-border transactions increase. At Mastercard, cross-border volume on a local-currency basis gained 17%.
Mastercard, based in Purchase, New York, said it expects net revenue to climb by a percentage in the low teens this quarter. The firm also expects an $85 million expense in the quarter, based on interest-rate assumptions, Chief Financial Officer Sachin Mehra guided on a call with analysts Thursday. Mehra said he was diagnosed last month with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of blood cancer, but “I feel good and I’m happy to be here speaking with you today.”
Mastercard announced plans to cut 3% of its staff worldwide in August, as it undertakes a reorganization aimed at focusing on growth areas. The company said on Thursday that it took a pretax charge of $190 million as part of that plan.
In June, a federal judge rejected a $30 billion deal brokered by Mastercard and Visa with US merchants, shutting down an attempt to settle longstanding litigation over credit-card swipe fees. In the third quarter, Mastercard recorded a $176 million provision for litigation.
(Updates with CFO comments starting in sixth paragraph.)
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