5 Best Warren Buffett Stocks to Buy Now

3. American Express Company (NYSE: AXP)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 53

American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) is an American financial services company, known primarily as the provider of AmEx credit and charge cards. It is ranked third on our list of 15 best Warren Buffett stocks to buy now. The stock has returned 79.08% to investors over the course of the past year.

On April 23, American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) posted earnings for the first quarter of 2021, reporting earnings per share of $2.74, beating estimates by $1.12. The revenue over the period was around $9.06 billion, down 12.09% year-over-year.

At the end of the first quarter of 2021, 53 hedge funds in the database of Insider Monkey held stakes worth $24.48 billion in American Express Company (NYSE: AXP). Out of the hedge funds being tracked by Insider Monkey, Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has the most valuable position in American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) as of the end of the first quarter of 2021, worth close to $21.44 billion, comprising 7.92% of its total 13F portfolio. 

On July 12, Wells Fargo kept its Outperform rating on American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) while increasing its price target to $200 from $185, arguing that card companies will continue to benefit from the reopening of the economy.

In its Q2 2021 investor letter, ClearBridge Investments, an investment management firm, mentioned American Express Company (NYSE: AXP). Here is what the firm had to say:

In financials, American Express has done an excellent job demonstrating the resiliency of its franchise in the midst of a global pandemic that drove a 60% decline in its core travel and entertainment business. The company’s spend-centric model has been helped by fiscal stimulus ensuring a flush consumer, while management continues to execute well by adding millions of new consumer and small and medium business accounts, which should benefit the franchise over the medium to long term. We remain optimistic regarding the company’s prospects as travel and entertainment activity rebounds, adding to our position in the quarter.