Costco shoppers will soon have one less thing to worry about leaving home with.
"The American Express card: Don't leave home without it." (Video via American Express)
The credit card company announced Thursday its exclusive deal as the only credit card accepted by the wholesale giant would expire in March of 2016.
Which sent its stock into a tailspin. The company's shares dropped steeply following the announcement — losing around $6 per share and nearly $5.9 billion in market value overall Thursday. (Video via American Express)
According to MarketWatch, it was American Express' biggest one-day price decline since September of 2008.
And investors had good reason to be worried. According to the National Retail Federation's 2014 list, Costco was the third-largest U.S. retailer with nearly 470 stores across the U.S.
Costco and American Express had reportedly been in negotiations to renew the deal but were unable to come to an agreement. (Video via Costco, American Express)
The Wall Street Journal quotes American Express' CEO in a conference call saying: "It's not easy to see a long-standing partnership end, but when the numbers no longer add up it’s the only sensible outcome." (Video via CNBC)
Costco had made a similar move in Canada last fall — dropping American Express and coming to an agreement with Capital One and MasterCard. It's unclear if Costco will make a similar move in the U.S.
The cost per share of American Express stock has dropped around $15 since the beginning of 2015. Friday morning it sat at around $78. (Video via American Express)
This video includes an image from The.Comedian / CC BY NC 2.0 and music from Broke For Free / CC BY 3.0.
