Compare Stocks › ARES vs AXP
Ares Management Corporation (ARES) vs American Express Company (AXP)
ARES
Ares Management Corporation
$107.99
VS
AXP
American Express Company
$294.93
Rewards
ARES
- ★Share count has been reduced by 33% over the past 5 years through buybacks, increasing each share's claim on earnings.
- ★FCF yield of 8.9% is historically attractive — the business generates significant cash relative to its price.
AXP
- ★Gross margin of 63.5% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
- ★Return on equity has consistently exceeded 20% over 4 years, indicating efficient use of shareholder capital.
- ★Each dollar of retained earnings has created $6.18 of market value — management is an exceptional capital allocator.
Risks
ARES
- ⚠Net debt/EBITDA of 10.3x indicates heavy leverage — it would take over 4 years of EBITDA to pay off net debt.
- ⚠Altman Z-Score of 1.36 places the company in the distress zone — financial patterns resemble those of companies that experienced bankruptcy.
AXP
- ⚠Altman Z-Score of 0.93 places the company in the distress zone — financial patterns resemble those of companies that experienced bankruptcy.
- ⚠7 insider sales totaling $36.4M with no purchases in the past 3 months — insiders are reducing their exposure.
- ⚠Free cash flow has declined at a 5.9% CAGR over the past 4 years — a concerning trend.
Key Valuation Metrics
Learn more →ARES
AXP
Valuation
$3.19B
Free Cash Flow
N/A
8.94%
FCF Yield
N/A
63.15
Trailing P/E
19.19
14.06
Forward P/E
14.64
Quality & Moat
2.61%
ROIC
9.49%
12.77%
ROE
31.97%
36.54%
Gross Margin
63.47%
N/A
PEG Ratio
1.16
Balance Sheet Safety
1.63
Debt / Equity
1.91
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
10.29
Net Debt / EBITDA
N/A
5.00%
Dividend Yield
1.29%
ARES: 2Ties: 2AXP: 4
ARESAXP
Historical Fundamentals
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Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.
AXP
Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.
Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.
$1 Retained Earnings Test
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N/A
Net losses over 3 years — test not applicable
Company had negative cumulative retained earnings
Σ Retained
$-2.63B
Δ Market Cap
+$23.73B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
AXP
$6.18
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Exceptional Value Creator
Σ Retained
$23.29B
Δ Market Cap
+$144.01B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis
Learn more →ARES
267.7% Overvalued
Price is 267.7% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $107.99
Strongly undervalued
Strongly overvalued
Fair Value: $29.37
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
AXP
38.6% Margin of Safety
Price is 38.6% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $294.93
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
Fair Value: $480.21
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth
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What growth rate is the market pricing in at $108?
+28.7%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies +4.0%
The market implies +28.7% Owner Earnings growth, below historical trends — potential opportunity.
Standard FCF implies a more demanding +4.0%, reflecting heavy growth investment expected to generate future returns.
AXP
Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.
Economic Moat Score
Learn more →ARES
47/100
Narrow Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None
Narrow moat with reinvestment efficiency as the key competitive advantage. Improving roic consistency would strengthen the moat.
Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 5 years of fundamental data.
AXP
40/100
Narrow Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None
Narrow moat with revenue predictability as the key competitive advantage. Improving margin stability would strengthen the moat.
Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.
Forensic Accounting
Learn more →ARES
-2.85
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone
M-Score Trend
Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
AXP
-2.51
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone
M-Score Trend
Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
Ownership Breakdown
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Insiders 11.2%Institutions 89.3%
No. of Institutional Holders1,148
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
AXP
Insiders 22.2%Institutions 64.8%Retail & Other 12.9%
No. of Institutional Holders3,749
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
Insider Buying Activity
Learn more →ARES
2
Buys (3M)
2
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $1.33M
OLIAN JUDY D.
Director
$59,726
@ $124.43 · 2026-02-20
BHUTANI ASHISH
Director
$1.27M
@ $126.61 · 2026-02-06
BHUTANI ASHISH
Director
$1.41M
@ $141.33 · 2025-03-11
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
AXP
0
Buys (3M)
1
Buys (12M)
Total value (12M): $4,054
JOABAR RAYMOND D
Officer
$4,054
@ $176.26 · 2025-04-09
ANGELAKIS MICHAEL J
Director
$998,593
@ $269.89 · 2025-03-07
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.
Insider Selling Activity
Learn more →ARES
2
Sells (3M)
5
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $24.83M
SAGATI AGHILI NASEEM
General Counsel
$529,032
@ $134.92 · 2026-02-04
SAGATI AGHILI NASEEM
General Counsel
$299,239
@ $161.84 · 2026-01-22
SAGATI AGHILI NASEEM
General Counsel
$3.28M
@ $155.97 · 2025-10-01
SAGATI AGHILI NASEEM
General Counsel
$3.75M
@ $178.40 · 2025-09-10
AROUGHETI MICHAEL J
Chief Executive Officer
$16.98M
@ $153.17 · 2025-03-24
DEVEER ROBERT KIPP III
President
$15.00M
@ $190.02 · 2025-02-06
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$2.62M
@ $180.16 · 2024-12-11
DEVEER ROBERT KIPP III
Officer and Director
$53.15M
@ $177.16 · 2024-12-10
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$980,502
@ $180.14 · 2024-12-09
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$292,425
@ $175.00 · 2024-11-11
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$3.21M
@ $175.18 · 2024-11-06
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$6.72M
@ $167.99 · 2024-10-17
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$3.20M
@ $160.07 · 2024-10-04
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$7.66M
@ $153.30 · 2024-09-19
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$4.77M
@ $146.67 · 2024-09-16
BERRY RYAN
Officer
$9.51M
@ $140.95 · 2024-09-09
DEVEER ROBERT KIPP III
Officer and Director
$6.26M
@ $150.21 · 2024-07-22
OLIAN JUDY D.
Director
$457,865
@ $134.00 · 2024-06-07
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
AXP
7
Sells (3M)
20
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $152.65M
LIEBERMAN QUINN JESSICA
Officer
$909,661
@ $300.02 · 2026-03-06
JOABAR RAYMOND D
Officer
$4.77M
@ $340.67 · 2026-02-19
GROSFIELD HOWARD M
Officer
$2.82M
@ $346.73 · 2026-02-12
RADHAKRISHNAN RAVIKUMAR S
Chief Technology Officer
$5.35M
@ $356.58 · 2026-02-09
SEEGER LAUREEN E
Officer
$4.60M
@ $360.99 · 2026-02-09
MARRS ANNA
Officer
$9.60M
@ $350.01 · 2026-02-05
PICKETT DENISE
Officer
$8.35M
@ $356.91 · 2026-02-05
JOABAR RAYMOND D
Officer
$538,902
@ $384.93 · 2025-12-12
RUTLEDGE ELIZABETH
Officer
$18.01M
@ $360.21 · 2025-10-31
TABISH DOUGLAS J
Officer
$894,359
@ $355.61 · 2025-10-23
PICKETT DENISE
Officer
$1.75M
@ $350.73 · 2025-10-22
SQUERI STEPHEN J
Chief Executive Officer
$37.03M
@ $329.86 · 2025-09-04
HERENA MONIQUE
Officer
$2.83M
@ $325.88 · 2025-09-03
BUCKMINSTER DOUGLAS E
Officer
$7.67M
@ $326.37 · 2025-09-02
SEEGER LAUREEN E
Officer
$23.37M
@ $296.90 · 2025-08-06
MCNEAL GLENDA G
Officer
$15.47M
@ $309.50 · 2025-07-29
MARRS ANNA
Officer
$1.71M
@ $310.77 · 2025-07-29
MARQUEZ RAFAEL
Officer
$3.56M
@ $296.93 · 2025-05-20
GROSFIELD HOWARD M
Officer
$2.60M
@ $275.50 · 2025-05-06
MCNEAL GLENDA G
Officer
$799,009
@ $264.66 · 2025-04-29
MARRS ANNA
President
$6.32M
@ $287.88 · 2025-03-04
LIEBERMAN QUINN JESSICA
Officer
$897,590
@ $296.43 · 2025-02-26
MCNEAL GLENDA G
Officer
$2.29M
@ $309.96 · 2025-02-11
SQUERI STEPHEN J
Chief Executive Officer
$16.24M
@ $319.45 · 2025-02-06
JOABAR RAYMOND D
Officer
$3.53M
@ $317.01 · 2025-02-05
RADHAKRISHNAN RAVIKUMAR S
Chief Technology Officer
$3.03M
@ $319.17 · 2025-02-05
PICKETT DENISE
Officer
$7.25M
@ $318.69 · 2025-02-05
JOABAR RAYMOND D
Officer
$4.77M
@ $313.94 · 2025-01-28
LE CAILLEC CHRISTOPHE
Chief Financial Officer
$1.82M
@ $303.48 · 2024-11-27
SQUERI STEPHEN J
Chief Executive Officer
$48.90M
@ $286.57 · 2024-11-07
HERENA MONIQUE
Officer
$374,010
@ $287.70 · 2024-11-07
BUCKMINSTER DOUGLAS E
Officer
$3.55M
@ $270.98 · 2024-10-29
WILLIAMS ANRE D.
Officer
$21.05M
@ $270.26 · 2024-10-22
PICKETT DENISE
Officer
$666,213
@ $240.68 · 2024-05-22
SKYLER JENNIFER
Officer
$3.58M
@ $241.73 · 2024-05-10
LIEBERMAN QUINN JESSICA
Officer
$729,770
@ $232.41 · 2024-05-06
MARRS ANNA
Officer
$829,501
@ $230.93 · 2024-05-03
BUCKMINSTER DOUGLAS E
Officer
$27.27M
@ $232.44 · 2024-05-02
SQUERI STEPHEN J
Chief Executive Officer
$9.28M
@ $238.63 · 2024-04-23
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.
🎭 Mr. Market's Mood
Learn more →ARES
😨Fear(31/100)
"Market is pessimistic — investigate whether fears are temporary or structural"
Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
AXP
😐Neutral(42/100)
"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"
Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
⚖️ Buffett Signal
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⚪Awaiting DCF Data
The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.
DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Fear (31)
AXP
⚪Awaiting DCF Data
The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.
DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (42)