American Express Profit Edges Up

American Express Co.'s first-quarter earnings rose 6.5% thanks to higher card member spending and loans, though foreign-currency impacts dented revenue.

Earnings beat the expectations of Wall Street analysts, but revenue was light. Shares edged down 1.1% after hours as the company said its results were hurt by the significant impact of a stronger U.S. dollar on its international operations.

Card member spending increased 3% globally, or 7% when adjusted for currency impacts.

The results came after a quarter filled with setbacks, the most notable of which were the end of the New York credit-card firm's partnership with Costco Wholesale Corp. and the loss of an antitrust lawsuit.

In all, American Express reported a profit of $1.53 billion, or $1.48 a share, compared with $1.43 billion, or $1.33 a share, a year earlier.

Revenue, net of interest expense, was $7.95 billion, down 2.7% from $8.17 billion a year earlier. The top line rose 1% adjusted for currency impacts and 5% when also adjusted to exclude the business travel operations that were part of the company a year ago.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected earnings of $1.37 a share on $8.2 billion in revenue.

The company's U.S. card service business reported that its earnings increased 7% to $934 million, while revenue, net of interest expense, increased 6% to $4.5 billion.

Provisions for losses totaled $420 million, down 13% from a year earlier, and American Express said credit indicators continued to be at historically strong levels.

Struggling in recent months to keep up with its longtime revenue-growth target of 8%, the company had focused instead on cost-cutting, including announcing in January the elimination of 4,000 jobs throughout the year.

Expenses in the most recent quarter fell to $5.21 billion, down from $5.48 billion a year earlier.

Write to Daniel Huang at [e-mail] and Tess Stynes at [e-mail]

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