HSBC Boosts American Express (NYSE:AXP) Price Target to $239.00

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price target raised by stock analysts at HSBC from $232.00 to $239.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the payment services company’s stock. HSBC’s target price points to a potential upside of 9.53% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on American Express in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $235.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on American Express from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered American Express from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $212.00 to $222.00 in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $201.62.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $218.20 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $157.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $231.69. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $218.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $185.90.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The payment services company reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.64 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16 billion. American Express had a net margin of 13.84% and a return on equity of 30.99%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.07 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 12.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other American Express news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,522,816.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were 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 owns 57,512 shares in the company, valued at $12,248,905.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 172,047 shares of company stock worth $36,528,388 over the last three months. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Tyler Stone Wealth Management purchased a new stake in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

About American Express

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.