Technology services boost NYSE Euronext profit

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Information and technology services, which Niederauer said last week the company would look to for opportunities to grow, saw a bigger boost than NYSE's more traditional businesses, with revenue up 11 percent.

NYSE responded to the collapse of the Deutsche Boerse deal by saying it will return $550 million to shareholders through a share repurchase program and seek to grow its derivatives business.

The group will provide details of a two-year plan to drive higher earnings per share at an investor day in April, chief financial officer Michael Geltzeiler said.

NYSE rival Nasdaq OMX Group beat fourth-quarter expectations last week, boosted by a rise in revenue from market data and technology, which helped offset a soft trading environment.

Also on Friday, LCH.Clearnet, NYSE's clearing house in Europe, reported a rise in underlying net revenues of 16 percent to 387 million euros ($515 million), while underlying full-year operating profit jumped 81 percent to 107 million.

NYSE Euronext is seen by analysts as an obvious rival bidder for LCH.Clearnet, which has been in exclusive sales talks with the London Stock Exchange since September.

NYSE was in talks about a possible joint bid for LCH with data vendor Markit but the plan was scrapped in the middle part of last year.

($1 = 0.7517 euro)

(Additional reporting by Kylie MacLellan; Editing by David Cowell and Dan Lalor)