American Express to Consolidate Facilities; Fourth Quarter EPS to $.88 Per Share or $.94 before Charge

American Express AXP said today that it will recognize fourth quarter restructuring and other reengineering charges of $113 million. The charges primarily reflect severance-related payments associated with a decision to consolidate locations within the Company's global servicing network. The overall reengineering initiatives are expected to generate additional charges in 2011 of $60 to $80 million ($38 to $51 million after- tax). Those charges would reflect costs associated with future closings of the real estate facilities and additional employee compensation during the transition period. After recognizing the fourth quarter charges, American Express expects to report quarterly net income of $1.1 billion, or $.88 per common share. This would represent an increase of 48 percent from $716 million, or $.60 per share, a year ago. Excluding the charges, fourth quarter adjusted earnings per share is expected to be $.94 per share.