Morningstar Investment Management LLC Sells 27,294 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Morningstar Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 49.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,990 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 27,294 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up 0.6% of Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $10,355,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in American Express by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,481 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,924,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in American Express by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,738 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $554,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. bought a new stake in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth about $428,000. Howland Capital Management LLC lifted its position in American Express by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 2,216 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $707,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in American Express by 19.9% during the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,898 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $924,000 after buying an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AXP. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of American Express from $323.00 to $322.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of American Express from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of American Express from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Loop Capital began coverage on shares of American Express in a report on Thursday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $389.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “sell” rating and issued a $285.00 target price on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $359.05.

Key Headlines Impacting American Express

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted American Express’s resilient premium spending, strong earnings growth, and expanding lifestyle ecosystem as reasons it may have more upside than PayPal. American Express vs. PayPal: Which Fintech Stock Has More Upside?
• Positive Sentiment: American Express expanded its sports-commerce strategy through a Fanatics tie-up, adding a co-branded card and rewards integration that could support card usage and customer engagement. AmEx Expands Sports Commerce Strategy With Fanatics Tie-Up
• Positive Sentiment: American Express was also mentioned as one of Warren Buffett’s long-term “forever” holdings, reinforcing investor confidence in the company’s durable business model and cash-generating ability. Warren Buffett’s favorite stocks to buy and hold forever
• Neutral Sentiment: Other articles simply reiterated American Express’s status as a Buffett-backed dividend and quality financial stock, which supports the investment case but does not represent a new catalyst. 2 Warren Buffett Stocks That Pay You a Passive Income
• Neutral Sentiment: A broader market piece said weakness in American Express is drawing attention to S&P 500 value stocks, which is more of a commentary on relative valuation than a direct negative company-specific development. American Express Weakness Puts S&P 500 Value In Focus
• Neutral Sentiment: Promotional news about new Hilton and Marriott card offers may support future card sign-ups, but it appears to be routine marketing rather than a major earnings-moving event. New Hilton and Marriott credit card offers — earn up to 175,000 points

American Express Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of AXP opened at $311.98 on Monday. American Express Company has a 52 week low of $281.46 and a 52 week high of $387.49. The firm has a market cap of $212.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $311.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $340.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.57.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.27. American Express had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 33.95%. The business had revenue of $14.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.64 EPS. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 17.59 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, April 3rd were paid a $0.95 dividend. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.71%.

American Express Company Profile

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.