American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Monday morning.

AXP has been the topic of a number of other reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of American Express from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $245.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a buy rating and a $235.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, December 18th. DZ Bank lowered shares of American Express from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an equal weight rating and issued a $221.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $201.62.

American Express Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $217.62 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $157.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $219.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $187.58. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $231.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The payment services company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by ($0.02). American Express had a net margin of 13.84% and a return on equity of 30.99%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.07 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 12.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.18%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the business’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 transaction, the insider now owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the business’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 directly owns 57,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $14,774,215.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 122,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,022,097.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 172,047 shares of company stock valued at $36,528,388 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. RB Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. RB Capital Management LLC now owns 3,783 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $707,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Roundview Capital LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 27,029 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $5,054,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its holdings in American Express by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,421 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in American Express by 207.1% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 946 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $177,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Donaldson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth $397,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.