Thomson Reuters Corp reported a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit and said it expected revenue to grow in 2009 despite job cuts and decreased spending among financial industry customers, sending its shares up more than 5 percent.

The news and financial data publisher, which was formed by Thomson Corp's purchase of Reuters Group Plc last April, also said on Tuesday that it expected underlying operating margin to be comparable to 2008, supported by revenue growth and higher savings from integration.

Thomson Reuters reported fourth-quarter net income of $656 million, or 79 cents a share, compared with $432 million, or 67 cents a share, a year ago.

Profit from ongoing businesses, excluding special items, was 57 cents per share, beating the average analyst forecast of 39 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.

Shares of the company rose to 1,390 pence in London trading from their previous close of 1,322 pence.

(Reporting by Robert MacMillan in New York and Georgina Prodhan in London, editing by Tiffany Wu and Ted Kerr)

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