MA MasterCard Incorporated

By Allison Prang

Mastercard Inc.'s (MA) profit rose in the fourth quarter, helped by the comparison to a weaker quarter a year earlier when the company recorded litigation costs.

Mastercard's net income in the fourth quarter jumped to $2.1 billion, or $2.07 a share, from $899 million, or 87 cents a share, in the prior-year period when Mastercard logged a more than $750 million litigation provision.

Adjusted earnings were $1.96 a share, up from $1.55 a share last year.

Analysts' consensus for earnings per share, according to FactSet, was $1.87 a share.

Mastercard also recorded a net gain on its equity investments of $119 million in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Revenue was $4.41 billion, up 16%. Analysts were expecting $4.4 billion.

The value of Mastercard's card transactions was $1.73 trillion, up 11%.

Write to Allison Prang at allison.prang@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 29, 2020 08:44 ET (13:44 GMT)

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