MADRID (Reuters) -Spanish construction giant Ferrovial posted a 19% rise in first-quarter core earnings on Tuesday, driven by strong performance in its toll highway business in the United States.

The company reported adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of 309 million euros ($345.8 million), which fell short of the 315 million euros expected by analysts, according to an LSEG survey.

Ferrovial's main assets are in North America, where it manages express lanes and is trying to win more projects. It is also building a new terminal at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, expected to be ready by 2026.

The company's sales in the quarter rose 7% to 2.05 billion euros from the same period last year. In the U.S., its highway business' revenue increased 19%.

Ferrovial had said that U.S.-managed lanes will continue to be profitable due to population growth in large cities, but also flagged that its construction projects in the country might be hit by higher inflation.

Ferrovial, which has a market value of 31.75 billion euros, became the first company on Spain's blue-chip index to list its ordinary shares on the Nasdaq a year ago, seeking to attract more capital in its most important market which generates 88% of its highways business revenue.

($1 = 0.8937 euros)