Social networking giant Facebook reported profits of $642m (£383m) during the first quarter of 2014, beating analyst expectations.

The firm said surging mobile advertising helped push first quarter revenue 72% higher, to $2.5bn.

Mobile now makes up 59% of advertising revenue, from 30% a year ago.

Facebook also announced chief finance officer David Ebersman will step down this year.

Mr Ebersman, who will remain with the company until September, will be replaced by David Wehner, Facebook's vice president of corporate finance and business planning.

"Facebook's business is strong and growing, and this quarter was a great start to 2014," said founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg in a statement. 

The firm said it reached 1.28 billion users during the period, with more than a billion of those accessing the site through a mobile device, such as a smartphone or tablet.

Shares of Facebook were up nearly 5% in after-hours trading.

(BBC)