American Express Company (AXP), a financial services company, is slated to announce its first-quarter results after the market close on Thursday, while conference call is scheduled at 5:00 PM ET.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters are looking for earnings per share of $0.12, on revenues of $6.45 billion for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items. In the year-ago quarter, the company posted earnings from continuing operations of $0.84 per share, on revenue of $7.19 billion.
On April 16, Fitch Ratings affirmed its investment-grade ratings on American Express, but revised its outlook on the ratings to negative from stable. The ratings service said it changed its outlook based on expectation that rising credit costs and declining billed business volume will reduce earnings potential and capital generation over the near term. The firm noted that the company could reduce or temporarily suspend dividend, if earnings fall more than expected.
American Express is expected to post lower first-quarter profit, as more consumers failed to pay their bills, amid job losses. Last month, U.S. unemployment reached a 25-year high of 8.5%. American Express said in a regulatory filing that U.S. credit card defaults rose to 8.8% in March from 8.6% in February.
In sequentially preceding fourth-quarter, the New York-based company's profit fell 79%, as customers reduced spending by 10%, and delinquencies and write-offs increased. Net income dropped to $172 million or $0.15 per share from $831 million or $0.71 per share in the corresponding quarter last year.
Income from continuing operations for the quarter was $238 million or $0.21 per share, down from $858 million or $0.73 per share last year. Total revenues, net of interest expense, were $6.51 billion for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008, down 11% from $7.32 billion in the same quarter last year.
Among others in the industry, Discover Financial Services (DFS) reported higher profit for the first quarter, reflecting a gain from an antitrust litigation settlement, and reduced its quarterly dividend to enhance its capital base. The Riverwoods, Illinois-based company's first-quarter net income increased to $120.39 million or $0.25 per share from $81.21 million or $0.17 per share in the first quarter of 2008. Net interest income for the quarter was $503.07 million, up from $323.36 million in the previous year.
Another peer, MasterCard Inc. (MA) is due to release its first -quarter results on May 1, with analysts projecting earnings of $2.61 per share, on revenues of $1.22 billion. For the fourth-quarter, the world's second biggest credit card processor suffered a 21% decline in earnings, as last year results were boosted by a hefty gain from an investment sale.
MasterCard reported fourth-quarter net income of $239.4 million or $1.84 per share, compared to $304.2 million or $2.26 per share for the year-ago quarter. Net revenue for the quarter rose 14.2% to $1.22 billion from $1.07 billion a year ago.
Larger rival Visa Inc. (V) is slated to announce its second-quarter results on April 29. Wall Street analysts estimate the company to earn $0.64 per share for the quarter, on revenues of $1.61 billion.
Visa reported higher profit in its first quarter, reflecting solid growth in payments volume. The San Francisco, California-based company's net income was $574 million or $0.74 per class A share, compared to $424 million in the prior year quarter. There are no comparable earnings per share measure for 2007, as Visa was a non-stock company at that time. Visa's net operating revenue for the first quarter increased 17% to $1.74 billion from $1.49 billion in the same quarter of last year.
AXP is currently trading at $19.98, up $0.55 or 2.83%.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.