Takeaways from American Express (NYSE: AXP) presentation at Morgan Stanley conference
Event Summary:
- Christophe Le Caillec, CFO of American Express (Amex), attended a conference hosted by Morgan Stanley.
- The discussion covered Amex's performance, strategy, and outlook, with a focus on consumer spending trends, premium card segment growth, technology investments, and credit quality.
Segment Performance:
- Consumer Spending: Amex sees continued strength in consumer spending, particularly among high-income consumers, both in the U.S. (8% growth in Q1) and internationally (13% growth in Q1).
- SME Space: There is softness in the SME space with low single-digit growth.
- Premium Card Segment: Amex has increased its share in the U.S. premium card segment from 20% to 25%. The strategy to focus on premium cards is working despite competition.
- Card Fees: Card fee growth has been in double digits for the past six years, with a focus on acquiring premium card members, ensuring renewals, and periodically refreshing products to add value and justify fee increases.
- Loan Growth: Amex's loan growth has been robust, driven by existing customers and the Pay Over Time feature, which is attached to premium products and offers short-term revolving credit for big-ticket purchases.
Outlook and Inflection Points:
- Revenue Growth: Amex maintains a full-year revenue growth guidance of 9% to 11%. Q2 trends ...