AMES, Iowa (AP) _ Renewable Energy Group Inc. (REGI) on Monday reported first-quarter profit of $38.6 million.

On a per-share basis, the Ames, Iowa-based company said it had profit of 88 cents.

The results beat Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 16 cents per share.

The biodiesel producer posted revenue of $539.7 million in the period, also topping Street forecasts. Five analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $539.3 million.

Renewable Energy Group shares have decreased 26% since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Monday, shares hit $52.55, more than doubling in the last 12 months.

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This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on REGI at https://www.zacks.com/ap/REGI