AMERICAN EXPRESS CO vs Nu Holdings Ltd., two Mortgage Finance stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Neither growth rate is on the page, but the multiples state expectations plainly: Nu at 32 times earnings is priced as Latin America's compounding neobank, American Express at 21.3 as the mature franchise it is. The current economics are surprisingly close: net margins of 17.1% and 15.1%, returns on equity of 25.8% and 33%, though Amex's uses 1.78 turns of leverage and Nu's almost none. Amex pays a 1% dividend; Nu retains everything for the next ten million customers. Eleven turns of premium buy Nu's demographic runway, tens of millions of underbanked customers still to come, against a franchise whose customers are already rich. Both prices are reasonable; only one needs a continent to cooperate.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | AXP | NU |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $340.48 | $13.15 |
| Market cap | $233.6B | $63.0B |
| Sector | Financial Services | Financial Services |
| Stage | Mature | Growth |
| P/E | 21.3 | 32.0 |
| P/B | 6.87 | 8.24 |
| P/S | 3.15 | 5.47 |
| Revenue growth | +10.5% | +105.9% |
| Gross margin | — | 45.6% |
| Net margin | 15.1% | 17.1% |
| Return on equity | 33.0% | 25.8% |
| Return on assets | 3.6% | 4.0% |
| Dividend yield | 1.0% | — |
| Debt / equity | 1.78 | 0.00 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 0.87 | 1.12 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 9 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.