| By Andy Swan LikeFolio metrics have picked up an interesting divergence in the financial services sector. Check out the chart below, tracking the year-over-year percent change in web traffic for four of the major players in this segment: 
Note Visa (V) is bucking the downtrend logged by all other financial services providers, and American Express (AXP) has dropped to second place. These two giants are executing distinctly different strategies – and we think investors can profit on both. We're placing a bullish earnings bet on one that reports tomorrow afternoon and developing a long-term bullish thesis for the other. Let's break it down… | Recommended Link | | | | Jeff Clark has a bold prediction. During Trump’s first 100 days back in the Oval Office, there could be at least one trade every week that has the potential to double your money. Jeff’s 40-year track record is packed with triple-digit gains, and he’s ready to share his number one strategy for capturing these explosive opportunities NOW. With market volatility under Trump’s aggressive agenda, now is the time to get in the game. Don’t let these potentially profit-rich weeks slip by. You have less than 24 hours to stream the unfiltered version of Jeff’s free event, The Most Profitable 100 Days of Your Life, and discover how to make the most of this historic trading window. Watch before midnight tonight for full details… |  | | Play No. 1: V Earnings Visa web growth outperformed all peers last month, yet its stock performance has trailed peers like Discover (DFS), creating a compelling earnings setup. 
Source: TradingView π
Visa is due to report this Thursday, January 30, after market close. And its growth strategies are clearly working… Strong Financial Performance Last quarter, Visa delivered $9.6 billion in net revenue, up 12% year-over-year, driven by an 8% increase in global payments volume and 13% growth in cross-border volume. International markets led the way, with payments volume rising 10%, showcasing robust performance in Latin America (+24%) and CEMEA (+19%). Global Partnerships and Expansion Visa expanded its reach by adding over 150 million merchant locations and signing 650 new commercial agreements, up 30% year over year. Notable partnerships included a renewal with Albert Heijn, the Netherlands’ largest grocer, and major renewals with Standard Chartered Bank (Asia-Pacific and CEMEA) and Alrajhi Bank (CEMEA). New Payment Use Cases Visa is capitalizing on non-traditional payment sectors through partnerships like AppFolio (APPF), which enables Visa to process rental payments for 8 million units in the U.S. The company also signed agreements with DailyPay for real-time earnings transfers and Revolut for instant card payments across 78 countries. Innovative Solutions Driving Adoption Visa launched an account-to-account payment solution, Visa A2A, which will debut in the U.K. this year. Tap-to-pay adoption is surging globally, reaching 82% penetration outside the U.S. and 54% domestically, bolstered by the addition of 110 new transit systems this year. B2B and Cross-Border Growth Visa Direct transactions rose 38% year over year, driven by strong use cases in cross-border and business-to-business payments. Key deals include a partnership with JPMorgan Chase (JPM) for virtual card issuance in Europe and Adyen (ADYEY) for online travel agency solutions, further strengthening Visa’s B2B presence. Visa is riding global digital payment tailwinds – and a robust holiday shopping season should provide the extra boost it needs to deliver a strong quarter. We’re playing tomorrow’s report to the upside. | Recommended Link | | | | An invention far beyond our current technology — even artificial intelligence — could go live any day now. When it launches, the world economy could accelerate by as much as 250 times its normal rate. But it could also send millions of Americans into poverty. Take these 3 steps to prepare today. |  | | Play No. 2: AXP Long-Term Accumulation On the flip side, AXP appears more focused on its long game… and so are we. American Express is the premium client play – and the company is working hard to establish its pipeline of loyal spenders, particularly among the younger generations. Premium Spending, Premium Profits American Express’s affluent customer base is a cornerstone, with spending among Millennial and Gen Z cardholders up 16% in the U.S. This segment helped AXP achieve 9% year-over-year revenue growth to $17.2 billion in the fourth quarter (marking its 11th consecutive quarter of record revenues). New card acquisitions reached 13 million in 2024, a new all-time high, with the majority of Gold Card users coming from younger demographics. The Gold Card Growth Engine The U.S. Gold Card is driving significant engagement among Millennials and Gen Z, a demographic that transacts nearly twice as often in dining compared to older cohorts. Dining spending grew 8% in the fourth quarter, outpacing the industry by nearly 2x since 2019. The recently refreshed Gold Card adds enhanced dining benefits, boosting new account acquisitions by 30% compared to the Platinum Card. 
Dining Ecosystem Expansion AXP is expertly leveraging its acquisition of the dining reservation platform Resy, scaling its reach to over 50 million registered users and 350 million seated diners in the past 12 months. It's also strengthening its dining ecosystem with additions like Tock and Rooam, extending benefits to wineries, hotels, and live events. These integrations provide value to both cardholders and merchants, creating a competitive edge in the $1 trillion U.S. dining market. Strong Retention and Upgrade Pipeline The company's strategy to attract younger customers with the Gold Card positions it for long-term success as these users grow into higher-income brackets. AXP's data indicates that new customer retention rates for Millennials and Gen Z are higher than for older generations, creating a pipeline for upgrades to premium products like the Platinum Card. Stable Financial Performance with Upside Despite a challenging macroeconomic environment, AXP recently posted full-year earnings of $14.01 per share, up 25%. While Gold Card growth currently outpaces higher-end Platinum products, this middle-tier focus is building a foundation for future upselling, positioning AXP for durable long-term growth. AXP's long-term Gold Card play relies on high retention rates, but our Consumer Happiness data suggests the company can pull it off. The Bottom Line A divergence in LikeFolio demand data has gifted us two different bullish ideas for two different companies – a short-term bet on Visa and a long-term accumulation opportunity for AXP. Earnings Season Pass members received our full earnings guidance for V in this week's Earnings Scorecard, and it’s not too late to place our recommended trade. Here’s how you can join today to get in on our V play – and dozens of other earnings trades for the week ahead. Until next time, 
Andy Swan
Founder, LikeFolio Discover More Free Insights from Derby City Daily Here’s what you may have missed from Derby City Daily this week… ✓ The Opportunity in DeepSeek’s AI Disruption ✓ DoorDash Delivers Two Powerful New Partners (Just in Time for Earnings) ✓ Wall Street Wake-Up Call: The Tesla Cultural Shift Is Real | 
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