American Express Company $AXP Stake Lessened by FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH

FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH lowered its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 16.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,103 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 3,127 shares during the period. American Express makes up 1.4% of FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH’s holdings in American Express were worth $5,957,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 153.3% in the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 76 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 210.7% in the third quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AXP. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $285.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of American Express from $375.00 to $325.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $415.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $361.05.

More American Express News

Here are the key news stories impacting American Express this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on profit and revenue — AXP reported EPS of $4.28, above estimates, and revenue roughly $18.9B with cardmember spending the strongest in three years; these fundamentals underpin long-term earnings power. American Express beats profit estimates (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: Premium customer strength — Amex is seeing accelerated luxury and travel spending from affluent and younger cardholders, supporting fee income and premium-product growth. Cardholder spending picks up (MarketWatch)
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic commercial wins — New partnerships (including the NFL deal) and product expansion are cited as drivers of revenue growth and customer engagement. NFL deal boosts revenue (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst move — Bank of America raised its price target to $387 and kept a buy rating, signaling upside from current levels for longer-term holders. BofA raises AXP PT (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: AI/product tie-ups — Amex is embedding Resy into Anthropic’s Claude in a product partnership that could enhance customer experience but is not an immediate earnings driver. Resy-Anthropic pact (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst commentary — Several outlets note AXP as a quality core holding (RBC) even as some firms debate relative upside vs. growth-oriented payments names; this leaves consensus views split. RBC view (Yahoo Finance)
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious FY2026 outlook — Management set EPS guidance of $17.30–$17.90, slightly below consensus, which traders interpreted as guidance conservatism and capped upside. Q1 beat but cautious outlook (Benzinga)
• Negative Sentiment: Higher investment and expense plans — Management flagged increased strategic spending (technology, marketing), which pressured near-term margins and contributed to the weak market reaction. Spending plans raise concern (Proactive Investors)
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish analyst moves — BTIG reaffirmed a sell rating with a $285 PT and JPMorgan previously trimmed its target; these calls add downward pressure and reduce near-term conviction. BTIG sell, JPMorgan cut (Benzinga/InsiderMonkey)
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/geopolitical caution — Middle East tensions and softer futures dampened overall market appetite for cyclicals, amplifying the stock’s decline despite good quarter-level results. Geopolitics weigh on markets (Zacks)

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Denise Pickett sold 23,385 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.91, for a total value of $8,346,340.35. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,767,480.14. This trade represents a 75.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 27,425 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.01, for a total value of $9,599,024.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 20,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,138,103.94. This represents a 57.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 73,944 shares of company stock valued at $26,114,366. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $314.08 on Monday. American Express Company has a fifty-two week low of $257.21 and a fifty-two week high of $387.49. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $313.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $344.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $214.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.13.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.27. American Express had a return on equity of 33.95% and a net margin of 15.13%.The company had revenue of $14.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.60 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 17.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 3rd will be given a $0.95 dividend. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.71%.

American Express Company Profile

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co‑brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.