Americans are spending again and American Express is booming

That momentum has increased as the quarter has progressed, the company said Friday, especially with spending from younger customers.

“ We’ve seen card member spending grow rapidly QoQ and exceed pre-pandemic levels in June, with the largest share of this spending growth coming from Millennial, Gen Z, and corporate customers. small ”, Chairman and CEO Stephen Squeri said in a prepared statement.

Revenue, minus interest expenses, rose to $10.24 billion from $7.68 billion last year, stronger than the $9.47 billion Wall Street is looking for, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research. earnings, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research.

Shares of American Express Co. was up 3.4% before the bell opened.

Demand for the Premium Platinum card is strong, said Squeri, and American Express signed up 2.4 million new cards during the quarter.

The New York company earned $2.28 billion, or $2.80 per share, in the three months ended June 30. A year earlier, the company had earned $257 million. dollars, or $0.29 per share. The current quarter includes $866 million in credit reserve issuance.

This easily beat the $1.64 prediction from industry analysts.

American Express’s consolidated credit provisions resulted in a profit of $606 million for the current quarter. This is mainly due to reserve issuances and lower net write-offs. For the year-ago period, provision expenses were $1.6 billion, mainly due to the substantial credit reserves the company made when faced with the aftermath of the financial crisis. Disease.

American Express has been affected by the pandemic, with fewer Americans traveling, dining or shopping. Spending on corporate and individual credit and debit card fees dropped, and revolving balance holders paid off their debt.

That spending freeze thawed as infections fell during vaccine rollout.

Infections have begun to spike in some parts of the country where vaccination rates are low. COVID-19 cases nearly tripled in the US within two weeks as a flurry of vaccine misinformation rattled hospitals.

At this point, increased infections in some parts of the US don’t seem to be a cause for concern given the high and rising vaccination rates in parts of the country.

“We are increasingly optimistic that the momentum we have built will continue to build on the strength we see in our core business, particularly in the US, even,” said Squeri. while the rate of recovery remains uneven in different parts of the world. . “ Based on current trends, we are confident in our ability to hit the top of the range of EPS expectations we already have for 2020 in 2022.”

Earlier this month, American Express said it was increasing the benefits _ and fees _ on its flagship Platinum Card. The annual fee will be between $550 and $695.