American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Acquired by Optas LLC

Optas LLC boosted its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,055 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the quarter. Optas LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $244,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,112,747,000. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $433,709,000. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,399,494 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $449,521,000 after purchasing an additional 919,337 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in American Express by 21.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,839,276 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $713,202,000 after buying an additional 667,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in American Express by 8.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,447,441 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,923,399,000 after buying an additional 662,382 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of American Express stock traded up $3.54 on Friday, hitting $251.30. The stock had a trading volume of 1,868,199 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,975,919. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $239.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $231.14. The stock has a market cap of $180.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-week high of $256.24.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. The business had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.24 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on AXP shares. Bank of America lowered American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup began coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Three investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.70.

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.