Discover posts loss in 1Q, misses expectations

NEW YORK -- Discover Financial Services says ongoing loan losses led it to lose money in the first three months of the year and fall well short of analyst forecasts.

The company says it lost $104 million, or 22 cents per share, for the three months that ended Feb. 28. That compares with a profit of $120.4 million, or 25 cents per share, in the period a year earlier.

The year-ago period's results were bolstered by a $475 million payment from Mastercard Inc. and Visa Inc. to settle an antitrust lawsuit.

On average, analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had forecast a profit of 12 cents per share.

Shares of Riverwoods-based Discover were unchanged in after-hours trading. They gained 7 cents to $15.27 during the regular session.