Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) shares jumped Thursday, after the social media company reported a net profit for the first time and returned to revenue growth.
Here's what Twitter reported before the opening bell:
Earnings were 19 cents per share, five cents above expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. Revenue was $732 million vs. the consensus estimate of $686.1 million.
EBITDA came in at $308 million vs. $241 million estimated by experts. Monthly active users: 330 million vs. 332.5 million estimated by experts.
The company said during its earnings report in October that if it hit the high end of its estimates of $220 million to $240 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization in the fourth quarter, it could be profitable under generally accepted accounting principles.
Twitter said total revenue increased 2% from a year earlier, and advertising revenue increased 7% year over year. It emphasized that 2018 will be an investment year, with the company putting money back into improving "information quality" by removing malicious content, spam, fake accounts as well as making it easier to identify credible accounts. It also will put money toward driving engagement and growing its sales team.
Despite hitting profitability, Twitter will soon have to navigate its future business without Chief Operating Officer Anthony Noto. The executive announced in January he would be taking over as CEO of finance startup SoFi beginning March 1.
Shares in Twitter leaped $6.11, or 22.7%, to $33.03 in early Thursday trading.
