Online auctioneer eBay posted on Wednesday a 28% surge in earnings on turnover that topped $1-billion for the first time.
The world’s biggest internet marketplace said it traded more than $10-billion worth of goods in the first quarter, earning net profits of $256,3-million, or 19 cents per share.
That compared to $200-million in the same three-month period a year before.
Excluding certain items, eBay earned $275,5-million, or 20 cents per share, topping analyst’s expectations by two cents.
Quarterly sales rose 36% to $1,032-billion, from $756-million last year, matching the consensus projection of Wall Street.
”A record jump in registered users, record GMV (gross merchandise volume), tremendous PayPal growth, and record net revenues all highlighted a wonderful quarter for eBay,” said the company’s chief executive, Meg Whitman.
”The eBay community is thriving, and we’re in an excellent position to deliver on both the top line and profit goals we’ve set out for 2005 and beyond,” she added.
The company said it expects to generate sales of between $4,27-billion and $4,36-billion in 2005, and profits of 76-78 cents a share, in line with analysts’ forecasts.
The auctioneer is setting great store by the growth of its PayPal system for making online payments, touting the e-mail based system as a cheap way of sending money to friends and family around the world.
From its creation in 1995, via a lucrative stock market listing, eBay has staged stellar growth and now claims more than 100-million registered users. – Sapa-AFP