Citigroup Issues Pessimistic Forecast for American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citigroup lowered American Express’s price target from $355 to $340 and maintained a neutral rating, implying approximately 11.6% upside from the reported share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: MarketBeat reports an overall “Hold” rating and an average price target of $369.81, with 13 Buy, 16 Hold, 1 Strong Buy and 1 Sell recommendation.
• American Express beat quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $4.53 versus the $4.41 consensus, while revenue rose 10% year over year; institutional investors own approximately 84.3% of the stock.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its target price lowered by Citigroup from $355.00 to $340.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "neutral" rating on the payment services company's stock. Citigroup's price target points to a potential upside of 11.58% from the company's current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on AXP. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of American Express from $389.00 to $386.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, July 13th. President Capital raised their price objective on American Express from $359.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $338.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on American Express in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $369.81.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP traded down $0.69 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $304.70. 1,491,264 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,231,031. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $329.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $324.67. American Express has a 1-year low of $290.97 and a 1-year high of $387.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $205.77 billion, a PE ratio of 18.49, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.05.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The payment services company reported $4.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.41 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $14.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.70 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.07% and a return on equity of 34.12%. American Express's revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.08 EPS. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Research analysts expect that American Express will post 17.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 5.3% during the second quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $341,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in American Express by 36.8% in the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 124,017 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $45,382,000 after purchasing an additional 33,342 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Express by 49.8% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 32,440 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $10,973,000 after purchasing an additional 10,781 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 62.9% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,219,787 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $412,593,000 after buying an additional 470,791 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of American Express by 40.2% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 40,967,262 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $13,857,176,000 after buying an additional 11,739,541 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting American Express

Here are the key news stories impacting American Express this week:

• Positive Sentiment: American Express is expanding its merchant acceptance network by approximately 20 million locations in 2026. The broader footprint could support higher card spending, customer engagement and transaction revenue. AmEx Adds 20 Million Merchant Locations in 2026: What's the Upside?
• Positive Sentiment: AXP declared its regular $0.95 quarterly dividend, payable November 10 to shareholders of record October 9. The $3.80 annualized payout and roughly 1.2% yield reinforce shareholder returns, although the dividend is unlikely to be a major short-term catalyst. American Express Declares Regular Quarterly Dividend on Common Shares
• Positive Sentiment: New and enhanced Aeroplan cards in Canada, including travel and lounge benefits, could help American Express attract premium customers and increase card spending when the portfolio launches in January 2027. American Express Unveils Its Next Generation of Aeroplan Cards
• Neutral Sentiment: American Express launched the next generation of Amex Corporate, adding AI-powered expense tracking and management tools to its corporate card offering. The move strengthens its product proposition but primarily responds to fintech competition. Amex Adds AI, Expense Tracking to Corporate Card to Counter Fintech Rivals
• Negative Sentiment: Recent valuation commentary questions whether AXP’s earnings growth is sufficient to justify its share price. A separate comparison with Virtu Financial may also influence value-focused investors toward the alternative, potentially limiting near-term upside. Can American Express Keep Earning Enough To Justify Its Price?

About American Express

American Express Company NYSE: AXP is a global financial services company that provides payment, lending, travel and related products to consumers, small businesses and corporate customers. Its offerings include consumer and business charge and credit cards, payment solutions, commercial financing, deposit products and rewards programs.

American Express also operates a worldwide merchant network and provides businesses with payment acceptance services, transaction-processing capabilities and data-driven marketing solutions.

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