Pensioenfonds Rail & OV Has $37.80 Million Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Pensioenfonds Rail & OV lessened its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 163,250 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 3,507 shares during the period. American Express comprises 2.8% of Pensioenfonds Rail & OV’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Pensioenfonds Rail & OV’s holdings in American Express were worth $37,801,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 62.5% in the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Compass Point began coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” 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 given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $231.43.

American Express Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $268.53 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $252.14 and its 200 day moving average is $239.55. The company has a market cap of $193.15 billion, a PE ratio of 22.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $272.68.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its 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 firm had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.89 EPS. The company’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 13.13 EPS 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 dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

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.