American Express (NYSE:AXP) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays reissued an equal weight rating and set a $221.00 price target (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Monday. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised American Express from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $245.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, HSBC boosted their price target on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $208.24.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP opened at $238.88 on Tuesday. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-week high of $239.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $172.92 billion, a PE ratio of 19.68, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.73. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $221.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $190.19.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a return on equity of 32.39% and a net margin of 14.50%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 12.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,522,816.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total transaction of $17,979,771.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 57,512 shares in the company, valued at $12,248,905.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total value of $1,431,455.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,522,816.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 172,047 shares of company stock valued at $36,528,388 over the last 90 days. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bell Bank bought a new stake in American Express during the first quarter worth $758,000. BSW Wealth Partners lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 3,556 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $810,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Milestone Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $5,068,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 6,771 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,542,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PFG Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. PFG Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 940 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $214,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.