Truist Financial Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price target increased by research analysts at Truist Financial from $315.00 to $335.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the payment services company's stock. Truist Financial's price objective suggests a potential upside of 16.95% from the company's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. BTIG Research decreased their target price on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. HSBC raised their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $296.05.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP traded down $0.73 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $286.45. 912,826 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,843,269. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $200.68 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $268.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $288.58. American Express has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.33 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 now directly owns 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,590,251. This trade represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new stake in American Express in the first quarter valued at about $34,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently 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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