Why American Express Stock Bumped Higher on Monday
With news of upcoming changes to its most popular product, American Express (NYSE: AXP) was a winner on the stock market as the trading week began. The company's shares increased more than 2% in value on Monday, more than double the 0.9% percentage gain of the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC).
Polishing the Platinum
Before market open, AmEx announced a series of major updates to its premium Platinum Card, a bonus-packed card that is its No. 1 product.
The catch is, that won't occur right away. AmEx said in a fairly brief press release that more details would be forthcoming in the fall. It did not provide more detail.
In fact, detail was quite sparse in the press release. The payment card giant didn't get specific at all regarding changes and adjustments to its popular Member Rewards program.
It only went as far as to quote its group president of U.S. consumer services Howard Grosfield as saying, "We're going to take these cards to a new level, not only in what they offer in travel, dining, and lifestyle benefits, but also in how they look and feel, to meet the evolving needs of our customers."
The power of perks
AmEx did, however, offer a few clues within its communication.
In the travel sphere, it boasted that qualifying card "members" can potentially access more than 1,550 airport lounges throughout the world. More are on the way; the company said it will open its Centurion Lounges in airports located in Newark, New Jersey; Salt Lake City, Utah; and across the Pacific Ocean in Tokyo. It's likely the company will spruce up at least a few existing lounges, too.
Management also touted AmEx's continued investment in dining and hotel options, so we can imagine the company boosting these offerings for cardholders as well.
The credit card space is becoming ever more competitive, with issuers scrambling to offer more and better perks. This is AmEx's wheelhouse, and as the master of perks, it's comforting to see the company still considers them a priority.
Should you invest $1,000 in American Express right now?
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