American Express (NYSE:AXP) Given New $253.00 Price Target at Royal Bank of Canada

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price target lifted by Royal Bank of Canada from $250.00 to $253.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the payment services company’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised American Express from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $245.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on American Express from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on American Express from $229.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock an in-line rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. DZ Bank downgraded American Express from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on American Express from $214.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $209.52.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $237.10 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $222.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $190.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $170.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.53, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $240.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.62.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.40 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 12.98 EPS for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $14,774,215.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 122,158 shares in the company, valued at $26,022,097.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 210,920 shares of company stock worth $45,804,652. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Express

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 62.5% during the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 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.