American Express (NYSE:AXP) Price Target Raised to $257.00

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price target increased by equities research analysts at Barclays from $250.00 to $257.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the payment services company’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 6.55% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on AXP. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. HSBC downgraded American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $265.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $226.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $244.42.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $275.00 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $261.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $244.02. The company has a market cap of $197.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.65, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. American Express has a twelve month low of $140.91 and a twelve month high of $286.36.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. Research analysts predict that American Express will post 13.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,467 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $398,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 2.5% in the third quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $443,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 0.4% during the second quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 10,384 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,404,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in American Express by 3.5% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,227 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, Davis Investment Partners LLC increased its position in American Express by 0.5% in the third quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC now owns 8,011 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,170,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

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.