JERUSALEM, April 25 (Reuters) - Check Point Software

Technologies ( CHKP ) on Thursday reported a higher than

expected profit for the first quarter, helped by double-digit

growth in its AI-powered security platform, which constituted

more than 13% of total revenue.

The Israeli-based company said it earned $2.04 per diluted

share excluding one-off items in the January-March quarter, up

13% from a year earlier. Revenue grew 6% to $599 million.

It was forecast to earn $2.00 a share on revenue of $594.88

million, according to LSEG data.

For the second quarter, the company projected revenue of

$607-$637 million and adjusted EPS of $2.10-$2.20, in line with

analyst estimates.

It did not change its 2024 projection for revenue of

$2.48-$2.63 billion and adjusted EPS of $8.7-$9.3.

Check Point said it bought back about 2 million shares in

the quarter, worth $325 million, as part of an ongoing $2

billion share buyback programme.