Gateway Advisory LLC Trims Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Gateway Advisory LLC reduced its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,854 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 61 shares during the quarter. Gateway Advisory LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $429,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Prairieview Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth $341,000. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE lifted its position in American Express by 196.2% during the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 10,046 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,882,000 after purchasing an additional 6,654 shares in the last quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in American Express by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 640 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased its position in American Express by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 4,855,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $909,575,000 after buying an additional 496,153 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, June 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.78.

American Express Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $267.29 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $192.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $272.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $249.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.55.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. The firm had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.