Strs Ohio Has $53.61 Million Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Strs Ohio trimmed its American Express stake by 5.4% in the first quarter, selling 10,133 shares and ending with 177,247 shares valued at about $53.6 million.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: Piper Sandler upgraded AXP to strong-buy, and the stock now carries a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $366.95.
• American Express continues to show solid fundamentals, with recent quarterly EPS of $4.28 topping estimates and revenue up 11.4% year over year, while the company also announced a $0.95 quarterly dividend.

Strs Ohio cut its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 5.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 177,247 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 10,133 shares during the period. Strs Ohio's holdings in American Express were worth $53,614,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AXP. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Lantz Financial LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 808 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $299,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Network Inc. lifted its stake 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 valued at $1,394,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. 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. Finally, Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY increased its stake in shares of American Express by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY now owns 1,400 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $518,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Key American Express News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler upgraded American Express (AXP) from neutral to strong-buy, signaling growing analyst confidence in the company’s outlook.
• Positive Sentiment: American Express and Apple Pay launched a “Use Pay with Points” feature, letting card members redeem Membership Rewards points at checkout, which could strengthen customer engagement and boost card usage.
• Positive Sentiment: American Express, Resy, and the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation launched Restaurant Academy, a new program that supports restaurant operators and reinforces AXP’s merchant relationships.
• Positive Sentiment: Several recent articles highlighted American Express as an undervalued Dow stock and a long-term Buffett holding, reinforcing the view that the stock still has room to run.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street expects American Express to report second-quarter EPS growth in the single digits, suggesting steady but not explosive earnings momentum ahead of the upcoming results.
• Neutral Sentiment: BTIG raised its price target on AXP to $324 from $285, but kept a Sell rating, showing that even some higher target revisions are coming with caution.
• Negative Sentiment: A 247WallSt comparison piece argued Mastercard’s network-fee model offers lower risk and better margin insulation than American Express’s credit-card business, highlighting a potential structural concern for AXP.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AXP. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $415.00 price target on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 10th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $375.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of American Express from $375.00 to $325.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on American Express from $395.00 to $385.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on American Express from $360.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $366.95.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $351.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $322.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $333.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $239.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.04. American Express Company has a 1-year low of $288.34 and a 1-year high of $387.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $14.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.60 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 33.95%. American Express's revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.64 EPS. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Express Company will post 17.65 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 2nd. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.71%.

About American Express

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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