American Express (NYSE:AXP) Receives $299.24 Average Price Target from Brokerages

American Express (NYSE:AXP) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the twenty-six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $303.52.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. HSBC boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th.

American Express Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE AXP opened at $270.80 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a fifty day moving average of $298.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $288.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $190.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.33, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. On average, analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.41%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in American Express by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 382,701 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $113,582,000 after buying an additional 73,442 shares during the last quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. boosted its position in American Express by 21.8% in the fourth quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 1,605 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Old North State Trust LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $280,000. IronOak Wealth LLC. purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,483,000. Finally, Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Hedge funds and other 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.