American Express Rises 1 Percent on Q4 Results

American Express

released its fourth-quarter earnings results after the closing bell on Thursday in a report which wasn't scheduled. The company said that net income in the period was $637 million or $0.56 per share. On an adjusted basis, the company reported net income of $1.2 billion or $1.09 per share, compared to $1.2 billion or $1.01 per share, in the year ago period. This beat analysts' consensus EPS estimates of $1.06. Total revenue in the quarter net of interest expense was $8.1 billion, a 5 percent gain versus the $7.7 billion the company reported last year. This barely missed Wall Street consensus revenue estimates of $8.12 billion. American Express disclosed that it plans to eliminate an estimated 5,400 jobs and that overall staffing levels are expected to decline by 4 to 6 percent by year end 2013 compared to current levels of 63,500. In Thursday's after hours trading session, AXP had added approximately 1 percent to $61.31.