Equity Investment Corp Has $59.29 Million Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Equity Investment Corp lowered its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 26.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 256,068 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 90,351 shares during the quarter. Equity Investment Corp’s holdings in American Express were worth $59,292,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Sachetta LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 62.5% in the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $255.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The company has a 50-day moving average of $245.86 and a 200-day moving average of $235.06. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $261.75. The company has a market capitalization of $183.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The firm had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on AXP. Bank of America lowered shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, June 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.70.

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.