American Express (NYSE:AXP) Given New $394.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods has raised American Express's price target from $371.00 to $394.00, suggesting an upside potential of 18.44% from the current price.
• American Express recently reported quarterly earnings of $4.08 per share, surpassing estimates of $3.86, with a revenue of $17.86 billion.
• The company has received varied ratings from analysts, with eight recommending a buy, fifteen holding, and two selling, indicating a mixed outlook in the market.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price target upped by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $371.00 to $394.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "outperform" rating on the payment services company's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price objective would indicate a potential upside of 18.44% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on AXP. DZ Bank lowered shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $327.00 target price (up previously from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $319.95.

American Express Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $332.66. 1,078,095 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,882,193. American Express has a 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $349.19. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $318.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $297.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $231.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The firm had revenue of $17.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.49 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.37, for a total transaction of $7,671,326.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 123,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,343,574.81. The trade was a 15.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total value of $1,709,235.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,312,049.47. This trade represents a 21.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Express

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,481 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,924,000 after purchasing an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its position in American Express by 15.7% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 20,816 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $5,601,000 after purchasing an additional 2,819 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC boosted its position in American Express by 4.3% in the first quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 11,678 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $3,142,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its position in American Express by 44.4% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in American Express by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,138 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $4,342,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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