Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Price

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its target price lifted by Barclays from $249.00 to $297.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the payment services company's stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Argus lowered shares of American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price objective (up previously from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of American Express from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $297.25.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded down $5.47 on Tuesday, reaching $317.26. 2,641,477 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,842,292. The company has a fifty day moving average of $297.78 and a 200-day moving average of $290.19. American Express has a twelve month low of $220.43 and a twelve month high of $329.14. The company has a market capitalization of $222.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.16, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 32.48%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.33 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's payout ratio is presently 22.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,590,251. The trade was a 50.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the sale, the insider owned 10,919 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the first quarter valued at $34,000. 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.