American Express (AXP)
Financials · $207B market cap · SEC CIK 0000004962
fundamentals score out of 100
Next reports on Oct 23, 2026, before the open, with analysts expecting $4.58 in earnings per share.
The case for AXP
- Earns 34% back on shareholder equity.
- Revenue growing 9.5% year over year.
- Has compounded revenue at 16.0% a year over five years.
- Gross margin of 61% absorbs cost shocks.
- Pays a modest 1.5% dividend.
The case against
- Near the bottom of its 52-week range, 21% below the high. Falling prices usually have a reason; find it first.
- Weakest against its peers: net margin of 14% is thinner than 69% of Financials companies.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Financials companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings, sales, assets and cash | 46 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 70 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 64 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 28 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 54 |
- Its debt and cash flow are not scored, as for every company in the Financials sector: for banks, insurers and brokers, borrowing is the business.
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 74 Financials companies.
Key numbers
| Price / earnings | 18.1× |
|---|---|
| Price / book | 6.73× |
| Price / sales | 2.6× |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | +9.5% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | +15.5% |
| Gross margin | 61% |
| Operating margin | 18% |
| Net margin | 14% |
| Return on equity | 34% |
| Debt / equity | 6.30× |
| Current ratio | 0.26 |
| Dividend yield | 1.46% |
| Beta | 1.11 |
| 52-week range | $290.97 – $387.49 |
| Position in that range | 15% of the way up |
| 3-month return | -7.2% |
| 1-year return | -8.1% |
Five years of financials, as filed
Pulled from American Express's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are derived from the rows above.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $41.3B | $38.8B | $37.2B | $34.2B | $27.7B |
| Net income | $10.8B | $10.1B | $8.4B | $7.5B | $8.1B |
| Operating cash flow | $18.4B | $14.1B | $18.6B | $21.1B | $14.6B |
| Capital expenditure | $2.4B | $1.9B | $1.6B | $1.9B | $1.6B |
| Total assets | $300B | $271B | $261B | $228B | $189B |
| Total liabilities | $267B | $241B | $233B | $204B | $166B |
| Shareholder equity | $33.5B | $30.3B | $28.1B | $24.7B | $22.2B |
| Cash | $47.8B | $40.6B | $46.6B | $33.4B | $21.5B |
| Long-term debt | $56.4B | $49.7B | $47.9B | $42.6B | $38.7B |
| Free cash flow | $16.0B | $12.1B | $17.0B | $19.2B | $13.1B |
| Net margin | 26.2% | 26.1% | 22.5% | 22.0% | 29.1% |
| Diluted shares | 696M | 713M | 736M | 752M | 790M |
Share count is down 11.9% over 4 years. Buybacks have been shrinking the pie.
What American Express says it does
Overview American Express is a global payments and premium lifestyle brand powered by technology. Founded in 1850 and headquartered in New York, American Express’ card-issuing, merchant-acquiring and card network businesses offer products and services to a broad range of customers, including consumers, small businesses, mid-sized companies and large corporations around the world. Our range of products and services includes: • Credit and charge cards and complementary products and services, including travel, dining, lifestyle and expense management products and services • Banking and other payment and financing products and services, including deposits and non-card lending • Merchant acquisition and processing, servicing and settlement, fraud prevention, and point-of-sale marketing and information products and services • Network services These products and services are offered through various channels, including…
Risk factors AXP lists in its 10-K
- Macroeconomic conditions are a major driver of our results of operations and changes in the business and economic environment may materially adversely affect our business
- Our business is subject to the effects of geopolitical conditions, weather, natural disasters and other catastrophic events
- Our operating results may materially suffer because of substantial and increasingly intense competition worldwide in the payments industry
- We face intense competition for partner relationships, which could result in a loss or renegotiation of these arrangements that could have a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations
- Our business is subject to evolving and comprehensive government regulation and supervision, which could materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition
- Surcharging, steering or other differential acceptance practices by merchants could materially adversely affect our business and results of operations
- Our brand and reputation are key assets of our Company, and our business may be materially affected by how we are perceived in the marketplace
- If we are not able to successfully invest in, and compete with respect to, technological developments and new products and services across all our businesses, our revenue and profitability could be materially adversely affected
- We may not be successful in realizing the benefits associated with our acquisitions, strategic alliances, joint ventures and investment activity, and our business and reputation could be materially adversely affected
- We may not be able to effectively manage the operational and compliance risks to which we are exposed
- A major information or cybersecurity incident could lead to reputational damage to our brand and material legal, regulatory and financial exposure, and could reduce the use and acceptance of our products and services
- The uninterrupted operation of our information systems is critical to our success and a significant disruption could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations
- Fraudulent activity associated with our products and services could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations
- Our use of models, including the data that underlie them, to manage risk and make business decisions may not be effective