(Reuters) – Nasdaq OMX Group Inc's (NDAQ.O) core profit topped analysts' expectations for the fourth quarter, boosted by a rise in revenue from market data and technology, which helped offset a soft trading environment.

Stock market volumes declined from the elevated levels of the prior quarter as volatility eased and investors moved to the sidelines. But the parent of the Nasdaq stock market has diversified its revenues through a number of small "bolt-on" acquisitions over the years, and has reaped the benefits.

Higher demand for its proprietary data services helped drive the company's market data revenue up 10 percent, while market technology revenue rose 4 percent from a year earlier due to recently delivered projects.

Transaction fees, meanwhile, slipped 1 percent from a year earlier and were down 13 percent from the prior quarter.

Nasdaq, which runs U.S. and Nordic markets, earned $82 million, or 45 cents per diluted share, in the fourth quarter, down from $137 million, or 69 cents per share, a year ago.

Excluding one-time items associated with debt refinancing and merger and strategic initiatives, it earned 63 cents a share, compared to 55 cents in the year-prior quarter.

Analysts on average expected the New York-based company to earn 61 cents per share, excluding items.

Revenue rose 6 percent to $422 million, versus expectations of $417.16 million.

Nasdaq's shares were up 1.09 percent at $25.03 on Wednesday around midday.

ANOTHER DEAL FAILS, BUT M&A NOT DEAD

Nasdaq's results were largely overshadowed by a ruling a couple of hours earlier by EU antitrust regulators blocking the merger of exchange operators Deutsche Boerse (DB1Gn.DE) and NYSE Euronext (NYX.N) on the grounds it would have lead to a near monopoly on the European futures market.

The sector has seen three other large deals fail this past year, including one in which the U.S. Department of Justice prevented Nasdaq and IntercontinentalExchange Inc (ICE.N) from buying NYSE Euronext.

Nasdaq Chief Executive Bob Greifeld said he was empathetic to what the management teams at both Deutsche Boerse and NYSE were going through, but that he does not believe the ruling will preclude other large exchange deals from happening.

"Our rejection by the DOJ and today's rejection by the EU Competition Committee certainly sends a clear message that a transaction that results in over 90 percent market share in a pre-defined market is highly suspect," he said on a call with analysts.

"But there is a compelling industrial logic of combining operations and technology of non-overlapping exchanges, and that will happen in the future."

Morningstar analyst Michael Wong said that Nasdaq itself would be a prime acquisition target.

"It would give instant diversification into U.S. equities, U.S. options, European equities, and European derivatives, listings and technology, and everything else that's in the Nasdaq OMX package," he said.

ORGANIC GROWTH IN FOCUS, DIVIDEND EYED

Greifeld said Nasdaq would focus on organic growth, with some smaller 'bolt-on' acquisitions, while returning capital to shareholders through share buybacks.

He said a dividend was a matter of "when, not if," and that it could come after the share buyback program is complete later this year.

While the quarter's results topped expectations, one item that caught some analysts off guard was Nasdaq's 2012 expense outlook of $955 million to $985 million.

"While initial guidance might prove to be conservative, it disappoints relative to our $940 million forecast and the $960 million Street consensus," UBS analyst Alex Kramm said in a note to clients.

On the listings front, Nasdaq said its initial public offering pipeline is the largest it has been in more than 10 years.

For the fourth quarter, listing fees were up 2 percent as Nasdaq added 56 new listings and 16 initial public offerings, including high-profile listings like Groupon and Zynga.

Nasdaq also said companies representing over $80 billion in market capitalization, including Texas Instruments, Viacom, and Wendy's, switched their listings to Nasdaq from other exchanges.

(This version corrects penultimate paragraph to Zynga instead of Zegna)

(Reporting By John McCrank in New York; Editing by Derek Caney, Dave Zimmerman and Gunna Dickson)

LOS ANGELES – Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said Friday that its third-quarter profit fell 24 percent from a year ago due to a sharp decline in the value its equity derivative contracts following the wild swings in the stock market this summer.

Paper losses aside, most of the mammoth company’s business segments, including its railroad, insurance underwriting and manufacturing operations, reported improved earnings for the quarter.

Berkshire said net income was $2.28 billion, or $1,380 per Class A share, for the three months ended Sept. 30. That’s down from net income of nearly $3 billion, or $1,814 per Class A share, a year earlier.

On a Class B share basis, the company’s earnings amounted to 92 cents a share, down from $1.21 a share.

Berkshire’s results fell short of the $1.20 per Class B share three analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected on average.

Revenue slid to $33.7 billion from $36.3 billion last year.

The Omaha, Neb.-based company recorded a loss from its derivative contracts of about $1.59 billion, much wider than the loss of $95 million booked the year before.

“A lot of that will be reversed this quarter because the market’s come back,” said Jeff Matthews, a shareholder who wrote “Secrets in Plain Sight: Business & Investing Secrets of Warren Buffett.”

All told, Berkshire’s investment gains and derivative losses combined to sap $1.53 billion from its profit in the third quarter. A year earlier, the company’s derivatives and investments added $202 million to quarterly net income.

The true value of the derivatives won’t be clear for at least several years because they don’t mature until an average of about 10 years from now. But Berkshire is required to estimate their value every time the company reports earnings. Buffett has said he believes the contracts will ultimately be profitable because the premiums are being invested.

Berkshire executives say the company’s operating earnings are a better measure of how the company is performing in any given period because those figures exclude its derivatives and investment gains or losses.

The company said its operating income climbed 37 percent to $3.81 billion in the quarter from $2.79 billion a year earlier.

Besides investments, Berkshire owns roughly 80 subsidiaries, including clothing, furniture and jewelry firms, but its insurance and utility businesses typically account for more than half of the company’s net income.

In the latest quarter, most of the company’s business segments turned in annual gains in earnings, led by insurance underwriting.

The segment generated net earnings of $1.09 billion, up from $199 million a year earlier.

That included an after-tax gain of about $855 million as the company reduced its estimate of reinsurance contract liabilities and changes in currency exchange rates.

The company’s insurance investment income segment posted a 10 percent drop in earnings to $783 million from $873 million in the prior-year quarter — a result of the drop in the value of the company’s derivatives.

Net earnings for Berkshire’s railroad business, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad, climbed 8.5 percent to $766 million from $706 million.

The company’s utilities and energy, manufacturing, service and retailing, and finance and financial products segments also reported annual gains in net income.

At the end of the quarter, the company’s book value was up 1.5 percent from the end of last year to $96,876 per Class A equivalent share, Berkshire said.

The company said in September that it planned to buy back its Class A and B shares should they trade at less than 110 percent of book value. That threshold would be less than $106,563 a Class A share, going by the company’s book value at the end of the quarter.

Berkshire’s Class A shares were down $4 to $115,802 in aftermarket trading on Friday. They ended the regular session down $2,494, or 2.1 percent, at $115,806.

PROFIT JUMPS: The summer’s heavy trading helped lift NYSE Euronext quarterly profit by 56 percent. Adjusted profit rose to 71 cents per share, on revenue of $1.26 billion.

BUYOUT IN QUESTION: NYSE Euronext intends to sell itself to Germany’s Deutsche Bourse in a $10 billion all-stock deal, but European regulators have expressed concern. A decision is expected by late December.

BUYBACKS PLANNED: Both NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Boerse are planning to repurchase their own shares ahead of the planned merger. NYSE said it will buy back up to $100 million in stock.

NEW YORK – NYSE Euronext on Thursday said the summer’s unusually heavy trading helped lift third-quarter profit by 56 percent.

The owner of the New York Stock Exchange and other operations reported net income of $200 million, or 76 cents per share, for the three months ended Sept. 30. That compared with net income of $128 million, or 49 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

Adjusted for costs related to the planned combination with German exchange operator Deutsche Boerse, a one-time tax benefit in Europe, and other items, profit came to 71 cents per share.

Revenue rose 20 percent to $1.26 billion, from $1.05 billion last year.

Analysts, on average, were expecting profit of 69 cents per share on revenue of $701.8 million, according to data provided by FactSet.

The strong results come as the exchange awaits a decision by European regulators on the $10 billion all-stock deal to create the world’s largest exchange operator that was announced in February.

The two companies reportedly have until Nov. 17 to address objections from the European Union’s competition watchdog that center on the potential for the combined company to potentially dominate the trading of derivatives, a very lucrative business for exchanges. Derivatives are complicated financial products that allow investors to bet on developments in things like commodity prices or interest rates.

CEO Duncan L. Niederauer said in a statement accompanying the results that the companies recently took part in a hearing before the EU regulators. “At the hearing, both companies were able to crystallize the compelling nature of our merger, which will bring significant benefits to customers, regulators and intermediaries.”

A decision on the deal is expected by late December. The two exchanges have stated the goal of completing the deal by the end of the year.

In conjunction with the deal, both companies last week announced plans to coordinate stock repurchases. NYSE Euronext it will buy back up to $100 million of its stock shares, while Deutsche Boerse AG said it would repurchase shares valued at around 100 million euros ($141.2 million). The two programs will take place simultaneously to preserve the ownership percentages of 40 percent and 60 percent to be held by former NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Boerse shareholders, respectively, in the combined company.

During the third quarter, trading volume on NYSE Euronext exchanges in both the U.S. and Europe surged amid the worst quarter for the markets since 2008. The European debt crisis, the U.S. debt ceiling debate and fears of another recession fueled the volatility.

The higher volume pushed up revenue from derivatives trading by 20 percent to $226 million. Average daily volume of global derivatives rose 33 percent to 9.3 million contracts.

Revenue from cash trading and listings gained 18 percent to $353 million. Average daily volume in Europe surged 40 percent to 1.9 million transactions. Average volume in the U.S. rose 9 percent to 2.6 billion shares traded.

During the most quarter, the New York Stock Exchange led 11 initial public offerings in the U.S., raising $3.2 billion.

The company’s revenue from information and technology services increased 11 percent to $125 million during the quarter.

Cost-cutting measures also helping NYSE Euronext’s results during the quarter.

Excluding merger-related costs, operating expenses slipped to $416 million, from $419 million last year. Excluding the impact of acquisitions, new initiatives and a $10 million negative impact attributable to foreign currency fluctuations, fixed operating expenses dropped 5 percent, the company said.

NYSE said it expects to meet its full-year guidance for operating expense of less than $1.65 billion, excluding merger expenses and exit costs. Factoring in certain portfolio changes and the impact of currency fluctuations, full-year 2011 expenses are expected to be about $1.68 billion.

In afternoon trading, NYSE Euronext shares gained 95 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $26.48. The stock is down 12 percent for the year.

NEW YORK – A grim profit report and forecast from manufacturing conglomerate 3M Co. is pulling stocks lower in early trading. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 130 points.

Netflix Inc. plummeted 37 percent after reporting that 800,000 customers left after the company raised prices in July.

3M, the maker of Post-Its and Scotch tape, said its third-quarter earnings fell 2 percent. It also expects growth to remain slow through the year and it cut its 2011 earnings forecast. 3M slumped 6.8 percent, the most among the 30 stocks in the Dow average.

Ten minutes after the opening bell Tuesday, the Dow was down 129 points, or 1.1 percent, at 11,782.

The S&P 500 fell 16, or 1.3 percent, to 1,237. The Nasdaq fell 36, or 1.3 percent, to 2,663.

CHICAGO – Online broker E-Trade Financial Corp. says its third-quarter net income jumped eightfold from a year earlier, boosted by a hefty tax benefit and increased trading by its customers during a summer of high volatility in the stock markets.

The New York-based company reported net income of $70.7 million, or 24 cents per share, up from $8.4 million, or 3 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.

E-Trade got a big boost during the quarter from a $62 million tax benefit from liquidating an international subsidiary.

Revenue was $507 million, up 4 percent from $489 million in the third quarter of 2010, but shy of the average forecast from analysts for $511 million.

CHICAGO – Online broker E-Trade Financial Corp. reported third-quarter profits Wednesday that surged eightfold from a year ago due to a hefty tax benefit and increased trading by its customers during a summer of high volatility in the stock markets.

The results exceeded analysts’ expectations and strengthened its return to profitability this year after several money-losing years due to bad mortgages in its banking division.

E-Trade got a big boost in the quarter from a $62 million income tax benefit for liquidating a European subsidiary.

The New York-based company reported net income of $70.7 million, or 24 cents per share, up from $8.4 million, or 3 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.

Revenue was $507 million, up 4 percent from $489 million in the third quarter of 2010.

Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast earnings of 18 cents a share and revenue of $511 million.

It decreased its loan loss provision in the quarter to $98 million from $152 million a year ago.

CEO Steven Freiberg said delinquency trends in the company’s loan portfolio continue to improve and the quarterly loan provision is now down about 80 percent from its peak.

Online brokers benefit from market volatility like the turmoil this summer amid investor nervousness over the European debt crisis, the U.S. debt-ceiling showdown and the uncertain global economy. E-Trade said its daily average revenue trades were up 30 percent from a year ago at 165,000.

E-Trade, which returned to profitability this year, recently began a strategic review at the behest of its largest shareholder, hedge fund Citadel LLC, that could lead to E-trade’s sale. Prospective suitors include Schwab, TD Ameritrade and Capital One Financial Corp.

Freiberg declined to discuss the status of the review but indicated it is ongoing.

Shares in the company rose 15 cents to $9.55 in extended trading after the company reported its results. During the regular session, the stock fell 25 cents a share, or 2.6 percent, to close at $9.40.

WASHINGTON – The Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday backed a proposal to bar banks from trading for their own profit instead of their clients.

The SEC voted 4-0 to send the ban on so-called proprietary trading out for public comment. The rule was required under the financial regulatory overhaul.

Critics on the left have dismissed the effort as weak and marred by loopholes. Banks argued it would hurt the economy.

The SEC is the third federal regulator to support the proposal, called the Volcker Rule after former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker. On Tuesday, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Federal Reserve both backed it.

For years, banks bet on risky investments with their own money. But when those bets go bad and banks fail, taxpayers may have to bail them out. That happened during the 2008 financial crisis.

Under the proposal, banks must hold investments for more than 60 days and bank managers must make sure employees comply with restrictions.

The public has until Jan. 13 to comment on the rule, which is expected to take effect by July after a final vote by all the regulators. Banks would have until July 2014 to comply.

Critics on the left contend that the rule as written is too vague and its effect on risk-taking will be limited. Banks have a history of working around rules and exploiting loopholes. In this case, banks can make most trades simply by arguing that the trade offsets another risk that the bank bet on.

Wall Street banks say the ban on proprietary trading could prevent them from buying and selling investments that their customers might want.

SEC Commissioner Troy Paredes, a Republican, on Wednesday echoed Wall Street’s criticism. He said the restrictions could dry up the flow of securities trading in the markets and would impose a heavy compliance burden on banks. Still, Paredes voted to approve the draft the rule.

The rule also would limit banks’ investments in hedge funds and private equity funds, which are lightly regulated investment pools. Banks wouldn’t be allowed to own more than 3 percent of such a fund. A bank’s investments in such a fund couldn’t exceed 3 percent of its capital.

Banks could still put their clients’ money into those funds. They will still be able to manage such funds, and collect fees and a percentage of trading profits.