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April 29 (Reuters) - CBOE Holdings Inc, operator of the largest U.S. options exchange, reported a 17 percent rise in first-quarter profit, boosted by higher transaction fees.
Fees from indexes accounted for 67.4 percent of total transaction fees, which rose 20 percent in the quarter. Index options are traditionally CBOE's highest fee-generating product.
The average rate paid per contract increased 19 percent to 40.5 cents from a year earlier, the company said.
The company, which owns the Chicago Board Options Exchange, said net income allocated to common shareholders rose to $49.2 million, or 60 cents per share, for the quarter ended March 31. That compared with $42.1 million, or 50 cents per share, a year earlier.
Market volatility stemming from concerns about global economic growth boosted transaction fees and pushed up operating revenue by 13.6 pct to $162.3 million.
Excluding items, the company earned 61 cents per share, narrowly missing the average analysts' estimate of 62 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Up to Thursday's close, Chicago-based CBOE's stock has fallen 1.3 percent this year.
(Reporting by Nikhil Subba in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Anil D'Silva)