American Express Q2 Profits Up Slightly

by InvestorPlace Staff | July 19, 2012 10:48 am

Financial service company American Express (NYSE:AXP[1]) reported earnings after the bell Wednesday and only saw Q2 profits increase slightly thanks to a slow in consumer spending the last few months.

Earnings for the quarter were $1.3 billion. Adjusted earnings of $1.15 per share beat Wall Street expectations for EPS of $1.09, and were up 1% from last year’s earnings of $1.10 a share.

The company said its revenue increased 5% to $7.97 billion, but still fell short of analyst predictions of $8.08 billion. Billed business, or spending on cards, only rose 6.7% — a slower growth rate than in other recent quarters.

Despite the slow in spending, the company’s loan delinquency rate remains near historically low levels, dropping to 1.2% from 1.5% a year earlier. Its net charge-off rate was also down 1% from the year prior.

After falling slightly in Wednesday after-hours trading, AXP was down almost 4% in Thursday morning trading. Still, shares of the New York lender are up around 20% since the beginning of the year.

– Alyssa Oursler, InvestorPlace Editorial Assistant

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