IMGCAP(1)]
Wright Express Corp., a payment-processing company for commercial and government vehicle fleets, this week announced net income of $72.3 million for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, up 224% from $22.3 million for the same period last year. Total revenues were $108.5 million, up 23.7% from $87.7 million. Payment processing generated $83.7 million of total revenue, up 24.9% from $67 million last year. Total operating expenses were $54.1 million, up 20.2% from $45 million. South Portland, Maine-based Wright Express served 4.5 million fleet vehicles during the quarter, up 2.2% from 4.4 million last year. Wright processed 55.5 million transactions during the quarter, up 3.5% from 53.6 million a year ago. Cardholders averaged 20.1 gallons of fuel per transaction Wright processed, down 2.4% from 20.6 gallons average last year. The average fuel price per transaction was $4.02 per gallon during the quarter, up 39.6% from $2.88 per gallon last year. On MasterCard-branded Wright Express cards, purchase volume was $670.1 million during the quarter, up 31.2% from $510.6 million last year. The net interchange rate on those transactions was 1.03% during the quarter, down 10 basis points from 1.13% last year. Revenue from processing those MasterCard-branded payments was $6.9 million, up 19% from $5.8 million last year.
