American Express Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:AXP)

American Express (NYSE:AXP) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock traders bought 33,847 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 75% compared to the average volume of 19,298 call options.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $155.51 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $158.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $159.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.35, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.55. American Express has a 1-year low of $130.65 and a 1-year high of $182.15.

American Express (NYSE:AXP – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 20th. The payment services company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.66 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $14.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.02 billion. American Express had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 29.44%. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 21.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.73 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that American Express will post 11.15 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, March 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase 120,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the payment services company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 7th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 6th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.54%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens reduced their target price on American Express from $149.00 to $146.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 21st. Barclays upped their target price on American Express from $158.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on American Express from $186.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 5th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on American Express from $179.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on American Express from $194.00 to $185.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $177.41.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 5,456 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.52, for a total value of $952,181.12. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,045 shares in the company, valued at $1,229,493.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 5,456 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.52, for a total value of $952,181.12. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,045 shares in the company, valued at $1,229,493.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Monique Herena sold 15,217 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.18, for a total value of $2,635,280.06. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,374,644.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in American Express by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 45,899,776 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $7,571,168,000 after buying an additional 423,300 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in American Express by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 22,000,787 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $3,629,030,000 after buying an additional 182,753 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Express by 118,198.3% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,732,068 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,028,913,000 after buying an additional 13,720,460 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,503,902 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,847,452,000 after purchasing an additional 35,760 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,602,539 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,744,148,000 after purchasing an additional 144,135 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.30% of the company’s stock.

American Express Company Profile

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American Express Co engages in the provision of charge and credit card products and travel-related services. It operates through the following segments: U.S Consumer Services (USCS), Commercial Services (CS), International Card Services (ICS), Global Merchant and Network Services (GMNS), and Corporate and Other.