Net income at eBay during the fourth quarter rose 13 per cent to $850 million, the company said on Wednesday, citing faster growth at its PayPal subsidiary.
eBay's revenue for the fourth quarter ended December 31 increased 13 per cent to $4.5 billion, compared to the same period of 2012.
Net income for the year totalled $2.85 billion, an increase of 9 per cent over 2012 and net revenue was $16 billion, up 14 per cent.
Revenue at eBay's online payments unit PayPal jumped 19 per cent to $1.84 billion in the quarter. Its revenue now comprises 40 per cent of eBay's.
That has caught the attention of activist investor Carl Icahn, who has proposed spinning off PayPal, which has 143 million users worldwide. Icahn has built up a 0.82 per cent stake in eBay, the company said.
Icahn, who simultaneously is >pressuring Apple to increase its buyback of company shares , has nominated two of his employees to join eBay's board.
eBay “hasn’t done as well as it should have,” Icahn said in an interview on Bloomberg TV. He called a separation of PayPal from the company a “no-brainer” that would improve value.