American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) reported third-quarter earnings Friday that beat analysts’ estimates.
The credit-card issuer’s stock rose nearly 2% to $121.38 a share in New York in pre-market trading following the upbeat news.
American Express said the higher-than-expected rise in its 3Q profit stemmed from more people using their credit cards to shop, pay bills and make big-ticket purchases.
Net income rose to $1.76 billion, or $2.08 per share, in the quarter ended September 30, from $1.65 billion, or $1.88 per share, a year earlier, the company said. Analysts had expected a profit of $2.03 per share.
Total revenue, excluding interest expense, rose 8% to $11 billion, helped by higher customer spending, net interest income and card fees. Analysts had expected $10.95 billion in revenue.
“The trends we saw in the business this quarter continue to be consistent with an economy that continues to grow, albeit at a more modest pace than last year,” Chief Executive Officer Steve Squeri said.
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