American Express (NYSE:AXP) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

American Express (NYSE:AXP) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-three ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $210.71.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total value of $2,342,945.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,891,480.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total transaction of $2,342,945.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,891,480.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 203,891 shares of company stock valued at $44,373,196. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Express

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Venture Visionary Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 23,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $4,349,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 11,587 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,171,000 after buying an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 417.3% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 415,696 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $77,876,000 after buying an additional 335,338 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $2,460,000. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,806 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,837,000 after buying an additional 2,572 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $231.46 on Friday. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $240.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $223.94 and a 200-day moving average of $193.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.23.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 12.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.06%.

American Express Company Profile

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as integrated payments company in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the Asia Pacific, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, Canada, the Caribbean, and Internationally. It operates through four segments: U.S. Consumer Services, Commercial Services, International Card Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services.