Greystone Financial Group LLC Boosts Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Greystone Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 6.0% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 45,785 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,572 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for about 2.1% of Greystone Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Greystone Financial Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $10,602,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 62.5% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sachetta LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. lifted its stake in American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of AXP stock traded down $7.78 on Friday, hitting $244.06. 3,652,963 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,967,115. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $175.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $244.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $234.00. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $261.75.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.89 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.12 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Citigroup assumed coverage on American Express in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. Compass Point assumed coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. BTIG Research began coverage on American Express in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.