New York, Feb 17, 2026, 18:32 EST — After-hours
American Express (AXP) climbed 2.1% in after-hours action Tuesday, hitting $344.53. The stock moved between $337.00 and $346.51 on the day. Roughly 3.2 million shares changed hands.
The move came after the company’s monthly filing, a document investors scan for fresh signals on the card lender’s credit health. Charge-offs—loans that can’t be collected—and overdue balances have a habit of moving quickly once borrowers begin to feel the pinch.
After the U.S. market holiday on Monday, traders returned to their desks, squeezing a week’s worth of data into a tighter window and recalibrating positions for the first full session post-Washington’s Birthday.
American Express, in a Form 8-K filed Tuesday, reported U.S. consumer card loans held for investment at $97.2 billion as of Jan. 31, slipping from $100.2 billion at December’s close. The 30-day delinquency rate stuck at 1.4%. Consumer net write-offs, annualized and principal-only, came down to 1.9% from December’s 2.1%. For small business, delinquencies landed at 1.7% while the net write-off rate nudged up to 2.8%. AmEx flagged that these monthly ratios shift with seasonality, holidays, and other calendar quirks.
Analysts will be tracking the drop in outstanding U.S. consumer balances for clues on repayment trends and possible loan growth after the holidays. At least for January, write-offs ticked down, relieving some pressure on the fierce debate over credit losses at card issuers.
American Express put in a notable showing among the Dow’s price-weighted heavy hitters this day. According to MarketWatch data, American Express and Visa combined drove roughly 91 points of the index’s swing.
Wall Street eked out modest gains following a volatile day. The Dow wrapped up at 49,533.19, with the S&P 500 settling at 6,843.22. Nasdaq finished at 22,578.38, numbers from the Associated Press show.
The credit outlook can flip fast if the economy slows more than anticipated. If delinquencies keep climbing, provisions are likely to follow—and card-lender stocks could feel the hit ahead of any impact in quarterly results.
The next few sessions could hinge on macro data. Investors have their sights on the Federal Reserve’s minutes and GDP figures due later this week—both seen as possible signals for the rate outlook, which shapes costs for consumer borrowing.
American Express said it will release its first-quarter results on April 24, with executives hosting a conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET. For AXP holders, this is the next key update on spending patterns and credit expenses.
