Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. Sells 43 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. lowered its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,132 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 43 shares during the quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $725,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Sachetta LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $265.49 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $190.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $247.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $236.22. American Express has a 1-year low of $140.91 and a 1-year high of $267.22.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Compass Point started coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.78.

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.