With a market cap of $215.9 billion, American Express Company (AXP) is a global integrated payments company that provides credit and charge cards, payment solutions, banking products, and related financial services to consumers, businesses, and corporations worldwide. It serves customers across the United States, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Canada, the Caribbean, and other international markets.
Companies valued at more than $200 billion are generally considered “mega-cap” stocks, and American Express fits this criterion perfectly. Operating through four business segments: U.S. Consumer Services; Commercial Services; International Card Services; and Global Merchant and Network Services, the company also offers travel, dining, lifestyle, expense management, and merchant processing services.
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Shares of the New York-based company have decreased 18.3% from its 52-week high of $387.49. Over the past three months, its shares have risen 2.5%, lagging behind the broader S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 10.2% increase during the same period.
www.barchart.com AXP stock is down 14.5% on a YTD basis, underperforming SPX's 10.7% gain. Longer term, shares of the company have returned 7.9% over the past 52 weeks, compared to the 28.7% return of the SPX over the same time frame.
The stock has been trading below its 50-day moving average since last year. Also, it has fallen below its 200-day moving average since mid February.
www.barchart.com Shares of American Express fell 4.3% on Apr. 23 as investors worried about rising costs despite strong Q1 2026 results, including plans for higher marketing, technology, and AI spending. Concerns also grew after U.S. consumer card additions declined to 1.3 million in Q4 2025 and Q1 2026 from about 1.5 million per quarter previously, while Card Member Service Expense surged 49% year-over-year due to expanded Platinum card benefits and higher customer usage. The decline came even though revenue rose 11% year-over-year to $18.91 billion and EPS increased 18% to $4.28, both beating analyst expectations.
In comparison, AXP stock has shown a more pronounced decline than its rival Visa Inc. (V) on a YTD basis, with Visa shares dropping 6.9%. Shares of Visa have dropped 9.3% over the past 52 weeks, lagging behind AXP stock.
Despite American Express’ underperformance relative to the SPX, analysts remain moderately optimistic about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from 29 analysts in coverage, and the mean price target of $362.23 is a premium of 14.5% to current levels.
On the date of publication, Sohini Mondal did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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