New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Cuts Position in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• New Age Alpha Advisors LLC reduced its American Express stake by 20.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 5,590 shares and leaving it with 21,169 shares worth about $7.83 million.
• Despite that sale, institutional ownership remains high, with 84.33% of American Express shares held by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Several other firms recently increased their positions.
• Analysts are mixed on AXP: the stock currently carries an average “Hold” rating with a $359.05 average price target, while recent estimates ranged from bullish $389 targets to a bearish $285 target.

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC cut its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 20.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,169 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 5,590 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $7,831,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp grew its position in American Express by 10.0% in the third quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp now owns 308 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC grew its position in American Express by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,214 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $465,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Lantz Financial LLC grew its position in American Express by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 808 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Network Inc. grew its position in American Express by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Financial Management Network Inc. now owns 3,740 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,394,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Bank & Trust Co. grew its position in American Express by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 2,620 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $969,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AXP shares. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of American Express from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Loop Capital started coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Thursday. They set a "buy" rating and a $389.00 price target for the company. Evercore set a $345.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. BTIG Research restated a "sell" rating and set a $285.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of American Express from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $359.05.

Key Stories Impacting American Express

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted American Express’s resilient premium spending, strong earnings growth, and expanding lifestyle ecosystem as reasons it may have more upside than PayPal. American Express vs. PayPal: Which Fintech Stock Has More Upside?
• Positive Sentiment: American Express expanded its sports-commerce strategy through a Fanatics tie-up, adding a co-branded card and rewards integration that could support card usage and customer engagement. AmEx Expands Sports Commerce Strategy With Fanatics Tie-Up
• Positive Sentiment: American Express was also mentioned as one of Warren Buffett’s long-term “forever” holdings, reinforcing investor confidence in the company’s durable business model and cash-generating ability. Warren Buffett's favorite stocks to buy and hold forever
• Neutral Sentiment: Other articles simply reiterated American Express’s status as a Buffett-backed dividend and quality financial stock, which supports the investment case but does not represent a new catalyst. 2 Warren Buffett Stocks That Pay You a Passive Income
• Neutral Sentiment: A broader market piece said weakness in American Express is drawing attention to S&P 500 value stocks, which is more of a commentary on relative valuation than a direct negative company-specific development. American Express Weakness Puts S&P 500 Value In Focus
• Neutral Sentiment: Promotional news about new Hilton and Marriott card offers may support future card sign-ups, but it appears to be routine marketing rather than a major earnings-moving event. New Hilton and Marriott credit card offers — earn up to 175,000 points

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $311.98 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $212.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $311.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $340.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. American Express Company has a 12 month low of $281.46 and a 12 month high of $387.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.27. American Express had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 33.95%. The company had revenue of $14.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 earnings per share. American Express's revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 17.59 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, April 3rd were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 2nd. This is an increase from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

American Express Profile

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co‑brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.

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