MasterCard Inc's fourth-quarter profit soared 41 percent to $415 million, as consumers around the world spent more money.

The world's second-largest credit and debit card processing network on Thursday reported a quarterly profit of $3.16 per share. That compared to a year-ago profit of $294 million, or $2.24 per share.

MasterCard shares closed up less than 1 percent at $239.39 on Wednesday, and fell less than 1 percent on Thursday before the market opened.

(Reporting by Maria Aspan, editing by Maureen Bavdek)