Eaton Vance, Deutsche Borse

Eaton Vance Corp. and Deutsche Borse AG and. both reported positive earning figures in financial reports issued today. Eaton Vance’s first-quarter earnings skyrocketed to $57.9 million, or 46 cents per diluted share, from 2.6 million, or 2 cents per diluted share, in the year-ago period. Eaton’s first quarter ended Jan. 31. The Boston-based company cited increased profits as the reason for the surge with total revenue for the quarter rising 24% to $289.8 million from the $243.2 million reported in the first quarter of 2007. Deutsche Borse’s fourth-quarter earnings rose 58% to $526.4 million, or 1.40 earnings per share compared with $334.2 million — 0.74 earnings per share — in the year-ago period. The Frankfurt, Germany-based exchange attributed the boost to increased trading activity. The company’s sales revenue increased 15% to $796.3 million for the final three months of the year compared to $633.7 million in the 2006 fourth quarter. Deutsche Borse’s stellar fourth-quarter performance was in stark contrast to European neighbor Societe Generale who reported record losses today following a trading scandal that has hit the Paris-based bank (InvestmentNews, Feb. 21).