Hengehold Capital Management LLC Takes $215,000 Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Hengehold Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 794 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 62.5% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in American Express during the 1st quarter worth $38,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. increased its holdings in American Express by 42.2% in the 2nd quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in American Express in the first quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the second quarter worth about $42,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI raised their target price on American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $223.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on American Express from $226.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $242.33.

American Express Trading Up 1.5 %

American Express stock opened at $285.78 on Friday. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-week high of $286.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $205.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.54, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $260.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $243.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The company had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. American Express’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 13.14 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

American Express 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.