Arizona State Retirement System Sells 306 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Arizona State Retirement System trimmed its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 166,995 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 306 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in American Express were worth $38,668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AXP. Spire Wealth Management increased its stake in American Express by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 4,273 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $224,000. Wealthspire Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Express by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 6,352 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,190,000 after purchasing an additional 625 shares in the last quarter. Vestor Capital LLC increased its stake in American Express by 121.1% during the 4th quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 745 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $140,000 after purchasing an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. increased its stake in American Express by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 12,795 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,397,000 after purchasing an additional 548 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.2 %

AXP stock opened at $251.25 on Friday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $180.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.74, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $244.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $233.78. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $140.91 and a fifty-two week high of $261.75.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BTIG Research assumed coverage on American Express in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Citigroup assumed coverage on American Express in a research report on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Compass Point assumed coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target 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, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.70.

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.