(Reuters) – American Express reported second-quarter revenue that fell short of expectations on Friday but raised its full-year profit forecast as the U.S. group’s affluent customers continued to spend heavily on travel, dining and entertainment.
The credit card issuer posted a 9% increase in revenue to a record $16.33 billion (€15 billion) for the period, but below analysts’ expectations of $16.59 billion in an LSEG consensus.
American Express, which has chosen to focus on a high-end clientele, however, beat expectations for its second-quarter profits and raised its annual forecast.
“Our expanding scale of business, combined with our premium customer base, well-controlled spend base and successful investments, are driving profitability in our core business,” Chief Executive Stephen Squeri said in a statement.
The group expects its earnings per share to be between $13.30 and $13.80, compared with $12.65 to $13.15 previously, after a profit of $3.02 billion in the second quarter.
Excluding proceeds from the sale of its fraud prevention technology unit, Accertify, second-quarter earnings per share were $3.49 per share, above analysts’ expectations of $3.24 per share, according to an LSEG consensus.
American Express shares fell 1.8% in pre-market trading.
(Report by Niket Nishant in Bangalore, by Alban Kacher, edited by Augustin Turpin)
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