Business Context and Reporting Period
This Form 8-K filing by American Express Company (AXP) was submitted on April 15, 2022, under Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure. The report provides preliminary delinquency and write-off statistics for the U.S. Consumer Card Member and U.S. Small Business Card Member lending portfolios for the months ended January 31, February 28, and March 31, 2022, as well as the three-month period ended March 31, 2022.
Key Financial Metrics
The filing details credit performance metrics for U.S. lending portfolios and the American Express Credit Account Master Trust (Lending Trust).
U.S. Consumer Card Member Loans (Three Months Ended March 31, 2022)
- Total Loans: $59.1 billion
- Average Loans: $58.1 billion
- 30 Days Past Due: 0.8% of total loans
- Net Write-off Rate (Principal Only): 0.8%
U.S. Small Business Card Member Loans (Three Months Ended March 31, 2022)
- Total Loans: $18.1 billion
- Average Loans: $17.2 billion
- 30 Days Past Due: 0.6% of total loans
- Net Write-off Rate (Principal Only): 0.6%
Combined U.S. Card Member Loans
- Total Loans: $77.2 billion
Lending Trust Performance (March 2022)
- Ending Total Principal Balance: $25.0 billion
- Defaulted Amount: $0.03 billion
- Annualized Default Rate (Net of Recoveries): 0.6%
- Total 30+ Days Delinquent: $0.1 billion
Material Changes Versus Prior Period
Comparing the three months ended March 31, 2022, to the prior month (February 2022):
- U.S. Consumer Loans: Total loans increased from $56.8 billion to $59.1 billion. The net write-off rate decreased slightly from 0.9% to 0.8%, while the 30-day past due rate remained stable at 0.8%.
- U.S. Small Business Loans: Total loans increased from $16.9 billion to $18.1 billion. The net write-off rate increased from 0.6% to 0.6% (stable), and the 30-day past due rate increased from 0.6% to 0.6% (stable).
- Lending Trust: The annualized default rate improved to 0.6% in March 2022 compared to 0.8% in February 2022.
Guidance, Outlook, and Risks
The filing does not contain forward-looking guidance, management commentary on future outlook, or specific risk factors beyond the disclosure of credit statistics. The document notes that the credit performance of the Lending Trust may differ from the total U.S. Consumer or Small Business portfolios due to differences in loan mix, vintage, aging, and calculation mechanics (e.g., end-of-period balances vs. average balances).
Investor Verification Checklist
- Verify the trend in net write-off rates for U.S. Consumer loans, which dipped to 0.8% in Q1 2022 after rising to 0.9% in February.
- Confirm the stability of 30-day past due rates (0.8% for Consumer, 0.6% for Small Business) across the three-month period.
- Review the discrepancy between the Lending Trust's annualized default rate (0.6%) and the broader portfolio write-off rates to understand securitization impacts.
- Monitor the growth in total loan balances, which reached $77.2 billion for combined U.S. portfolios in March 2022.