Snap Inc. saw its shares surge by nearly 60 percent after the company reported its first-ever quarterly profit, defying analysts’ predictions that the messaging platform would post another loss. The California-based company said in a Feb. 3 earnings report that its fourth-quarter profit was $22.6 million, or 1 cent per share. The report came as an upside surprise for markets, with analysts expecting Snap to report a loss of 9 cents a share, according to data from FactSet. The surprise announcement sent shares of Snap soaring by $14.30, or 58 percent, to $38.89 in after-hours trading. This came after Snap stock dropped nearly 24 percent, following Facebook parent Meta’s shocking plunge. “2021 was an exciting year for Snap and we made significant progress growing our business and serving our global community,” said CEO Evan Spiegel in Thursday’s earnings report. “The strength of our core business has enabled us to accelerate …