During my (very long) career in credit cards, I’ve held Mastercard and Visas at every top bank, but there was a trigger point in 1998 when I went rogue and got my first American Express card. Crossing the line was a big deal.
After seeing the cache of American Express, telling me “membership has its privileges,” or the voice of Bugs Bunny telling me not to “leave home without it,” I wanted one. The basic green card would help me reduce revolving charges because it had to be settled every month. Even Superman and Seinfeld liked American Express, after all.
As a long-term user of American Express, I can attest to the loyalty and trust the company has built. Two cards, the American Express Blue Preferred and the American Express Delta Preferred, have found a permanent place in my wallet. While they haven’t replaced my Mastercard and Visa, they have become integral to my financial life, with no sign of attrition.
Friday’s WSJ had a compelling story about American Express’s strategic shift in appealing to younger age cohorts. This move is not only paying off now but also holds promising potential for the future as these consumers mature into other financial service products, and eventually, deposit and savings relationships.
- A decade ago, it was common to ask if younger Americans were falling out of love with plastic. The reasons offered were many: They had seen their parents deal with card debt; they didn’t care about frequent-flier miles; and they had new alternatives like buy-now-pay-later loans.
- Fast forward to 2024. Amex shares are now zooming, up over 25% this year. The stock has returned an annualized 17% since the start of 2020, beating the S&P 500’s annualized return by almost 4 percentage points. It is now trading at over 17 times forward earnings.
- And at its investor day presentation in April, Amex’s current chief executive Stephen Squeri reiterated the company’s belief that it can deliver 10%-plus annual revenue growth over the long term.
Booking Younger Cardholders
- Younger card members have been one driving force.
- Over three-quarters of new accounts acquired in 2023 for U.S. consumer premium Gold and Platinum cards were Gen Z or millennial-aged, according to company figures.
- Many of Amex’s young consumers are going straight to cards such as the $695-annual-fee U.S. consumer Platinum, rather than starting with no-fee cards and working their way up.
- It may be the case that a cohort of millennials, some of whom started their financial lives around the time of the 2008-2009 financial crisis, did feel some reluctance about credit cards. But Gen Z members who have entered early adulthood may not suffer the same hangup.
Got this One Right
Both my Amex cards have fees, and they are not cheap, but my return is usually about 5:1, so what? Pay $100, earn $480, I will take that any day. Amex’s President of U.S. Consumer Services, Howard Grosfield notes:
- The annual fees don’t appear to be as much of a barrier, either. “They’ve been raised on subscription fees”
- “They do the mental math of … am I getting value in excess of the subscription fee?”
The Secret Sauce Going Forward
- To justify ongoing investment in enticing young power spenders, spending growth needs to keep up. Amex can find other cost efficiencies.
- It can continue to keep credit losses low, and expand other ways to monetize card members, like by offering more lending. Amex believes it can deliver mid-teens earnings-per-share growth to accompany that 10%-plus revenue growth.
But for me, the American Express cache is what started our relationship. Rewards and service is what kept me for almost three decades. And now, my adult kids are targets for their field of credit cards.