Bank of Montreal Can Raises Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,048,371 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,086 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned 0.15% of American Express worth $251,609,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake in American Express by 119.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 39,497 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,993,000 after buying an additional 21,508 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 102.9% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,480 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,842,000 after purchasing an additional 6,329 shares during the period. Sciencast Management LP purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the first quarter worth approximately $1,881,000. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board grew its position in American Express by 15.5% during the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 35,763 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,143,000 after buying an additional 4,800 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 49.0% during the first quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 279,106 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $63,550,000 after buying an additional 91,760 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on AXP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.78.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $267.29 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $249.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $237.55. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $272.41. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $192.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.02, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. The firm had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that American Express will post 13.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.