eBay Earnings Rise on PayPal Performance

Online auction house eBay on Wednesday reported better than expected earnings driven by the success of its online financial transactions service PayPal.

EBay revenue for the quarter ending December 31 was slightly less than $2.5 billion and its net profit was $559.2 million dollars.

"We delivered a strong fourth quarter and a solid year," said eBay chief executive John Donohoe. "We are driving strong local growth at PayPal and strengthening our core eBay business."

PayPal ended the quarter with 94.4 million registered user accounts and handled a total of $26.9 billion in payments during the period, according to eBay.

The company saw revenue rise in its online auction Marketplaces during the year-end holiday shopping season.

EBay finished the year with a net profit of $1.8 billion on $9.16 billion in revenue.

The San Jose, California-based Internet firm's stock price climbed about two percent to $29.68 per share in after-hours trading that followed release of the earnings results.