Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Reduces Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. reduced its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 41,019 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 321 shares during the quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in American Express were worth $9,498,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC grew its position in American Express by 0.4% in the second quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 10,384 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,404,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Ignite Planners LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 4,682 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,103,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Willner & Heller LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Willner & Heller LLC now owns 1,087 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Beacon Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 18.9% during the 2nd quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 271 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,593 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $600,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup assumed coverage on American Express in a research report on Monday, June 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. BTIG Research assumed coverage on American Express in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.70.

American Express Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $259.00 on Monday. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $261.75. The stock has a market cap of $186.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21. 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 50-day simple moving average of $246.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $235.60.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. The firm had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.89 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.