Kowal Investment Group LLC Acquires 164 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Kowal Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 13.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,417 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the quarter. Kowal Investment Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $328,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. lifted its position in shares of American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the first quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Up 0.1 %

AXP stock opened at $268.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $249.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $237.11. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $271.49. The company has a market capitalization of $193.49 billion, a PE ratio of 22.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.89 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Finally, Compass Point assumed coverage on shares of American Express in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.78.

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.