EBay 2Q profit falls on GSI acquisition charges, growth helps results beat analysts’ estimates

SAN FRANCISCO – EBay Inc.’s second-quarter results beat analyst expectations Tuesday with growth in its PayPal online payment service and marketplace business – although profit fell 31 per cent on charges from a recent purchase.

For the quarter ended June 30, eBay earned $283.4 million, or 22 cents per share, compared with $412 million, or 31 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

The company finished its acquisition of e-commerce retail site operator GSI Commerce in June in a deal valued at $2.4 billion. As a result, eBay’s operating expenses for the quarter rose 32 per cent to $1.5 billion.

Excluding one-time items, the company earned 48 cents per share – two cents per share more than what analysts polled by FactSet expected.

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EBay’s revenue climbed 25 per cent to $2.76 billion from $2.22 billion a year earlier, as the number of people using PayPal and eBay.com rose. Analysts forecast $2.60 billion.

EBay, based in San Jose, Calif., said revenue from its marketplaces business, which is its largest unit and includes the eBay.com website, climbed 19 per cent to $1.66 billion, while revenue from PayPal shot up 31 per cent to $1.07 billion. The company’s results also included $23.8 million in revenue from GSI.

The value of all goods sold on eBay, excluding vehicles, climbed 17 per cent to $14.68 billion. Though eBay’s roots are in the online auction business, more than half of the transactions on the site these days are fixed-price sales.

The amount of money processed through PayPal climbed 34 per cent to $28.74 billion. PayPal also hit an active-user milestone during the quarter, rising above the 100-million active accounts mark.

For the current quarter, eBay expects net income of 37 or 38 cents per share, or 46 or 47 cents per share excluding items. Analysts are looking for 47 cents per share. The company did not give a revenue forecast.

For all of 2011, eBay predicted net income of $2.41 to $2.44 per share – $1.97 to $2 per share excluding items – on $11.3 billion to $11.6 billion in revenue. Analysts expect an adjusted profit of $1.97 per share on $10.8 billion in revenue.

EBay shares dipped 72 cents, or 2.2 per cent, to $32.45 in extended trading. The stock finished regular trading down 59 cents at $33.17.