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Wright Express Corp., a payment-processing company for commercial and government vehicle fleets, today reported adjusted net income of $24.9 million for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, up 14.2% from $21.8 million during the same period a year ago. Total revenue was $86.6 million, down 20.2% from $108.5 million. "New business again helped offset the contraction in transactions from our existing customer base, and fleet transaction volume was in line with our forecast," Wright Chairman and CEO Michael Dubyak said in a statement. Several factors contributed to the quarter's positive results, Dubyak said. On the revenue side, the company benefited from higher-than-expected MasterCard purchase volumes, fuel prices and late-fee income, he said. "At the same time, we have continued to be successful in managing credit loss and other operating expenses," said Dubyak. Total operating expenses were $50.3 million, down 7% from $54.1 million. South Portland, Maine-based Wright Express served an average of 4.6 million vehicles during the quarter, up 2.9% from 4.47 million during the same quarter last year. Total fuel transactions processed declined 6.9%, to 67.1 million from 72.1 million. On MasterCard-branded Wright Express cards, purchase volume was $876 million, up 30.7% from $670 million. The net interchange rate on those transactions was 1.1%, up seven basis points from 1.03% a year ago. Revenue from processing the MasterCard-branded payments rose 40.6%, to $9.7 million from $6.9 million.
