IAC Earnings Rise 74% on Travel, Refinancings

Barry Diller’s IAC/InterActiveCorp, owner of Expedia and LendingTree.com, said first-quarter profit surged 74%, helped by a rise in travel bookings and loan refinancing.

Net income rose to $72.2 million, or 9 cents a share, from $41.5 million, or 5 cents, a year earlier, the New York-based company said. The per-share profit is after payment of preferred dividends.

Sales at IAC, which also owns home-shopping network HSN, climbed 14% to $1.65 billion.

IAC’s travel business, the largest by operating profit, boosted revenue 14% on gains at European websites and a rise in hotel stays. Revenue more than doubled in the real estate unit as the company closed on $9.59 billion worth of loans.

IAC, which , who is buying Web search engine Ask Jeeves Inc. to enter the booming online search advertising market, plans to spin off its travel division.