eBay Inc. reports strong third quarter earnings thanks to PayPal

Ecommerce giant eBay Inc. released its third quarter earnings report today, boasting a 13% increase in profits over the last quarter, and a 32% increase in profits when compared to the same quarter in 2010.

The company reported third quarter earnings of $490.5 million, or 37 cents a share (compared to from $431.9 million, or 33 cents a share, a year earlier), and non-GAAP net income of $628.2 million, or $0.48 per share. Market analysts had been predicting that eBay Inc. would report third-quarter earnings of around 48 cents a share.

eBay Inc. president and CEO John Donahoe attributes the growth in profits to the continuing expansion of PayPal, particularly with PayPal mobile.

“Our company reported another strong quarter, with eBay, PayPal and GSI each performing well,” said eBay Inc. President and CEO John Donahoe. “Mobile commerce continues to accelerate as consumers change the way they shop and pay.

“We expect eBay mobile commerce to generate almost $5 billion in merchandise volume this year and PayPal mobile to exceed $3.5 billion in payment volume. Mobile is one way online and offline shopping are blending into a single commerce environment. We are focused on enabling commerce, helping consumers shop anytime, anywhere, and being the commerce partner of choice for retailers of all sizes.”

eBay Inc. shares dropped down 5.7% after trading hours, coming to a stop at $31.32.