Discover Financial Services, the fourth-largest US credit card network, said Wednesday that first-quarter profit fell 65 percent, hurt by a charge related to its British credit card unit Goldfish.
However, earnings easily beat analyst estimates.
Net income fell to $81.2 million, or 17 cents per share, from $233.6 million, or 49 cents per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, profit from continuing operations fell 8 percent to $238.8 million, or 50 cents per share, from $259.8 million, or 54 cents per share, a year earlier, weighed by the deteriorating economy.
Analysts had been expecting earnings of 40 cents per share. Discover shares were up in premarket trading.