AXP vs. BRK.A: American Express vs. Berkshire Hathaway Stock Comparison

June 23, 2026

How do American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) both fall under the Financial Services industry group, but AXP is classified in Consumer Finance while BRK.A is classified in Financial Services.

Company profile comparison for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Profile Item	AXP	BRK.A
Name	American Express Company	Berkshire Hathaway Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Financials	Financials
GICS Industry Group	Financial Services	Financial Services
GICS Industry	Consumer Finance	Financial Services
GICS Sub-Industry	Consumer Finance	Multi-Sector Holdings
Market Capitalization	230.67 billion USD	1,056.00 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	June 1, 1972	March 17, 1980
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Performance

Cumulative Growth

AXP

BRK.A

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A). Returns over one year are annualized.

Performance at a Glance

Performance metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
Total Return (1Y)	14.41%	0.60%

Risk

Drawdown

AXP

BRK.A

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

American Express (AXP) trades around 3.12M shares per day on average, while Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) sees only 198 — a volume gap that can matter for position sizing, exit liquidity, and order execution.

Risk at a Glance

Risk metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	26.42%	13.98%
Beta (5Y)	1.04	0.61
Avg. Volume (3M)	3.12M	198

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

American Express (AXP) at 34.42% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 10.50% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for AXP.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

34.42%

Max: 42.17%
AXP: 34.42%
Q3: 21.45%
Median: 12.25%
Q1: 5.03%
Min: -17.69%

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

10.50%

Max: 42.17%
Q3: 21.45%
Median: 12.25%
BRK.A: 10.50%
Q1: 5.03%
Min: -17.69%

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their ROE against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both American Express (AXP) at 16.31% and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 19.31% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

16.31%

Max: 66.55%
Q3: 30.55%
Median: 16.68%
AXP: 16.31%
Q1: 4.51%
Min: -26.88%

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

19.31%

Max: 66.55%
Q3: 30.55%
BRK.A: 19.31%
Median: 16.68%
Q1: 4.51%
Min: -26.88%

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their net margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both American Express (AXP) at 21.25% and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 14.35% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

21.25%

Max: 95.95%
Q3: 48.12%
Median: 26.49%
AXP: 21.25%
Q1: 11.92%
Min: -36.26%

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

14.35%

Max: 95.95%
Q3: 48.12%
Median: 26.49%
BRK.A: 14.35%
Q1: 11.92%
Min: -36.26%

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their operating margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability at a Glance

Profitability metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
ROE (TTM)	34.42%	10.50%
ROA (TTM)	3.80%	5.39%
Net Margin (TTM)	16.31%	19.31%
Operating Margin (TTM)	21.25%	14.35%
Gross Margin (TTM)	--	--

Growth

Revenue Growth

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

Revenue Growth at a Glance

Revenue growth metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
Revenue Growth (YoY)	9.52%	-3.23%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	10.97%	20.59%

EPS Growth

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth at a Glance

EPS growth metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
EPS Growth (YoY)	9.78%	-24.78%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	16.01%	--

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: American Express (AXP) in Financial Services and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) in Financial Services both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: American Express (AXP) in Financial Services and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) in Financial Services run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength at a Glance

Financial strength metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
Current Ratio (MRQ)	--	--
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	--	--
Net Debt / EBITDA	--	--

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile American Express (AXP) reports a yield of 1.01%, ranking against industry peers normally.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

1.01%

Max: 18.02%
Q3: 8.19%
Median: 1.52%
AXP: 1.01%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

0.00%

Max: 18.02%
Q3: 8.19%
Median: 1.52%
BRK.A: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile American Express (AXP) reports a payout of 21.29%, ranking against industry peers normally.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

21.29%

Max: 228.57%
Q3: 94.58%
Median: 25.37%
AXP: 21.29%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

0.00%

Max: 228.57%
Q3: 94.58%
Median: 25.37%
BRK.A: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividends at a Glance

Dividend metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
Dividend Yield (TTM)	1.01%	0.00%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	21.29%	0.00%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both American Express (AXP) at 21.10 and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 14.58 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

21.10

Max: 45.51
Q3: 25.29
AXP: 21.10
Median: 14.65
Q1: 9.07
Min: 0.64

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

14.58

Max: 45.51
Q3: 25.29
Median: 14.65
BRK.A: 14.58
Q1: 9.07
Min: 0.64

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both American Express (AXP) at 3.35 and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 2.81 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

3.35

Max: 9.92
Q3: 4.86
AXP: 3.35
Median: 2.85
Q1: 1.44
Min: -1.10

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

2.81

Max: 9.92
Q3: 4.86
Median: 2.85
BRK.A: 2.81
Q1: 1.44
Min: -1.10

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) at 1.45 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while American Express (AXP) at 6.78 carries an above-peer premium to book — AXP is pricier on assets.

AXP

Financial Services industry group

6.78

Max: 7.44
AXP: 6.78
Q3: 3.58
Median: 1.67
Q1: 0.90
Min: 0.00

BRK.A

Financial Services industry group

1.45

Max: 7.44
Q3: 3.58
Median: 1.67
BRK.A: 1.45
Q1: 0.90
Min: 0.00

American Express (AXP) vs. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation at a Glance

Valuation metrics for American Express (AXP) and Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A)
Metric	AXP	BRK.A
P/E Ratio (TTM)	21.10	14.58
P/S Ratio (TTM)	3.35	2.81
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	6.78	1.45
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	--	--