American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stake Increased by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 52.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 854,256 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 293,717 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up 0.7% of Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.12% of American Express worth $197,803,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in American Express by 8.5% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,447,441 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,923,399,000 after purchasing an additional 662,382 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $1,112,747,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its stake in American Express by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 4,855,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $909,575,000 after acquiring an additional 496,153 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in American Express by 8.2% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,595,370 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $590,940,000 after acquiring an additional 195,876 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 22.2% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,129,175 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $485,525,000 after purchasing an additional 387,166 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on AXP shares. Citigroup initiated coverage on American Express in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Compass Point began coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.70.

American Express Stock Down 3.1 %

AXP traded down $7.78 on Friday, reaching $244.06. 3,652,963 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,967,115. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-week high of $261.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The company has a market cap of $175.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $244.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $234.00.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.60 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.89 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 13.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express 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.