NYSE Euronext returns to profit in 4th quarter
NYSE Euronext, the trans-Atlantic stock exchange operator, said Tuesday it returned to profit in the fourth quarter as cost-cutting helped offset a drop in revenue from falling global share trading volumes.
The operator of the New York Stock Exchange and markets in Paris, Amsterdam and Brussels reported net profit of $172 million in the three months to Dec. 31, compared to a $1.34 billion net loss a year earlier, when collapsing equity markets forced it to slash the value of the 2007 merger of NYSE and Euronext.
Revenue slipped 7 percent in the fourth quarter to $1.13 billion. The company blamed "a decline in global cash equities volumes" as well as price cuts at some of its European and U.S. operations.
For the full year, NYSE Euronext reported net profit $219 million, as revenue slipped 0.3 percent to $4.69 billion.
To counter falling revenue, NYSE Euronext said it managed to cut its fixed operating expenses by 11 percent over the year. In October it completed its acquisition of the American Stock Exchange, a deal that it says will provide annualized savings of more than $100 million.
