American Express (NYSE:AXP) Price Target Increased to $175.00 by Analysts at BMO Capital Markets

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price objective hoisted by BMO Capital Markets from $167.00 to $175.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an underperform rating on the payment services company’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on AXP. StockNews.com downgraded American Express from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Robert W. Baird cut American Express from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Barclays reiterated an equal weight rating and set a $221.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on American Express in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a buy rating and a $235.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an outperform rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $208.24.

American Express Trading Up 0.8 %

American Express stock opened at $232.88 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $220.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $189.56. American Express has a 12 month low of $140.91 and a 12 month high of $235.37. The company has a market capitalization of $168.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.23.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.39% and a net margin of 14.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that American Express will post 12.92 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid 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 is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Insider Activity at American Express

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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,522,816.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $14,774,215.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 122,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,022,097.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total value of $1,431,455.85. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,522,816.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 172,047 shares of company stock valued at $36,528,388. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CIC Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. CIC Wealth LLC now owns 1,518 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $346,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 6,330 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,441,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,490 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,188 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 62.5% in the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is 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.