HS Management Partners LLC Takes $15.26 Million Position in American Express Company $AXP

HS Management Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 45,119 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,262,000. American Express makes up about 5.2% of HS Management Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth $14,208,662,000. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in American Express by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 29,464,868 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $10,900,528,000 after purchasing an additional 369,967 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 9,023,482 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $3,338,238,000 after acquiring an additional 141,936 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of American Express by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 7,850,298 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,904,218,000 after acquiring an additional 558,533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of American Express by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 7,515,675 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,780,424,000 after acquiring an additional 2,393,340 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $396.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. DZ Bank raised shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of American Express from $312.00 to $329.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $387.00 to $391.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Evercore set a $370.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, July 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $373.32.

American Express Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of AXP stock traded up $1.38 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $339.90. 2,538,525 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,294,725. The firm has a market cap of $229.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.04. American Express Company has a fifty-two week low of $290.97 and a fifty-two week high of $387.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a current ratio of 1.55. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $342.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $327.04.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 24th. The payment services company reported $4.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.41 by $0.12. American Express had a net margin of 15.07% and a return on equity of 34.12%. The business had revenue of $19.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.08 EPS. American Express’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 17.67 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 2nd. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Key Headlines Impacting American Express

Here are the key news stories impacting American Express this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Expanded corporate payments capabilities: American Express is embedding virtual cards more deeply into its U.S. commercial-payment tools, including the @ Work platform and Conferma for business travel. The strategy could improve security, simplify expense management and increase customer retention, strengthening Amex’s competitive position in premium corporate payments. Is American Express’ Expanded Virtual Cards Strategy Deepening Its Corporate Moat in Premium Payments?
• Positive Sentiment: New St Andrews partnership: American Express became the official payments partner of St Andrews Links, expanding its sports and lifestyle marketing platform. The agreement may support international brand visibility, card-member engagement and premium travel-related spending, though the near-term financial impact is likely limited. American Express and St Andrews Links Trust Announce Partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Premium-card momentum and younger customers: A profile of CEO Steve Squeri highlights Amex’s success attracting millennials and Generation Z to high-fee products such as the Platinum card. Continued acceptance of premium annual fees would support spending growth, fee revenue and the company’s long-term brand positioning. The American Express CEO Defied Haters
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming investor presentation: Management will participate in the Barclays Global Financial Services Conference on September 16. Investors may receive updated commentary on spending trends, credit quality and 2026 guidance, but no new information was announced today. American Express to Participate in Barclays Global Financial Services Conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Limited indirect items: American Express is included among the holdings of US Financial 15 Split Corp., while Berkshire Hathaway’s portfolio is becoming more concentrated in Dow components. These developments offer little direct information about AXP’s fundamentals or valuation.

About American Express

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co‑brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.