American Express (NYSE:AXP) Upgraded to “Buy” at Monness Crespi & Hardt

Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $245.00 price objective on the payment services company’s stock.

AXP has been the topic of several other research reports. DZ Bank cut shares of American Express from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $214.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on American Express from $216.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $220.00 to $226.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut American Express from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, January 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $196.25.

American Express Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of AXP opened at $224.27 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $162.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $217.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $184.52. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $231.69.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The payment services company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.64 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 30.99% and a net margin of 13.84%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.07 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 12.84 EPS for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is 24.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,522,816.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total value of $14,774,215.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 122,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,022,097.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total value of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at $2,522,816.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 172,047 shares of company stock valued at $36,528,388 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Tyler Stone Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of American Express in the second quarter worth $27,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth $29,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Company Profile

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.