American Express (NYSE:AXP) Receives $230.78 Average PT from Analysts

American Express (NYSE:AXP) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-six ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have given a hold recommendation and ten have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $231.43.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup started coverage on American Express in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Compass Point began coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd.

American Express Stock Performance

American Express stock opened at $271.17 on Tuesday. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $272.68. The company’s 50-day moving average is $251.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market cap of $195.05 billion, a PE ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.89 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.13 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.06%.

Institutional Trading of American Express

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 10,384 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,404,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Ignite Planners LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 0.9% during the second quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 4,682 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,103,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Willner & Heller LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 4.1% in the second quarter. Willner & Heller LLC now owns 1,087 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 18.9% in the 2nd quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Wealth Planning LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,112 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 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.