Amex posts beat, PayPal shines, Ford makes moves

Here’s a look at some of the companies the Yahoo Finance team will be watching for you today.

American Express beat expectations in its latest earnings. Profit was up 22% last quarter and Amex says it expects full year revenue to rise upwards of 10%. The company also says it just signed a deal to let customers pay their bills through PayPal.

Speaking of PayPal, it also posted a big beat in its latest earnings report. A surge in payment volume for Venmo helped boost the bottom line, with overall revenue up 14%. PayPal says it added a record $9.1M accounts in the third quarter. It also raised its earnings guidance for the 4th quarter.

Ford is tapping a big-name actor as it tries to overhaul its image. Bryan Cranston will become the new face of the company hosting its new “Built Ford Proud” ad campaign. That’s a change from the long-running “Build Ford Tough” slogan. Ford has been struggling with slowing sales and a big slide in its stock price in recent months.

You can now officially place your order for a slightly cheaper new Apple iPhone. The XR went up for sale overnight and will set you back just shy of $750 for the base model. It’s $900 if you want the one with 256 gigs of memory, but prices may vary slightly depending on your carrier. The devices won’t start shipping until next Friday.

And if you’ve been waiting to buy that new Tesla, now could be your chance. Elon Musk just unveiled the new lower-cost Model 3. The sticker price is $45,000. However, he says it will actually go for much less thanks to tax incentives. Still, the price is higher than the $35,000 base Musk originally promised.