Shares of credit card giant Visa (NYSE: V) jumped more than 3% in early trading this morning after reporting (apparently) stronger than expected fiscal Q2 2024 earnings -- and much better than expected revenue.

Heading into the quarter, analysts forecast Visa would earn $2.29 per share on $8.1 billion in revenue. In fact, Visa earned $2.51 per share on $8.8 billion in sales. Investors' enthusiasm for the news is, however, moderating as the day wears on. As of 12:20 p.m. ET, Visa stock has retraced to just a 1% gain.

There may be some confusion about what analysts predicted Visa would earn, and what it actually did earn. Visa noted that its earnings as calculated according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) were actually $2.29 on the nose -- exactly what analysts predicted. The $2.51 per share earnings, it turns out, was only Visa's non-GAAP profit, which adjusts for what the company considers "one-time items."

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Source Fool.com