Middleton & Co. Inc. MA Sells 50 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Middleton & Co. Inc. MA lessened its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,219 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 50 shares during the period. Middleton & Co. Inc. MA’s holdings in American Express were worth $282,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,447,441 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,923,399,000 after buying an additional 662,382 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its stake in American Express by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 4,855,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $909,575,000 after acquiring an additional 496,153 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in American Express by 8.2% in the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,595,370 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $590,940,000 after acquiring an additional 195,876 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of American Express by 22.2% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,129,175 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $485,525,000 after acquiring an additional 387,166 shares during the period. Finally, Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 1st quarter valued at about $433,709,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Down 1.2 %

AXP stock opened at $262.21 on Thursday. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $267.22. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $247.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $236.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market cap of $188.61 billion, a PE ratio of 21.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AXP shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. BTIG Research initiated coverage on American Express in a report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Compass Point began coverage on American Express in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.78.

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.