The Goldman Sachs Group Has Lowered Expectations for American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Price

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price objective dropped by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from $367.00 to $330.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the payment services company’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 25.71% from the company’s previous close.

AXP has been the subject of a number of other reports. HSBC boosted their price objective on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point decreased their price target on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup raised their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their target price on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $303.52.

American Express Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded down $1.88 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $262.51. 1,166,911 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,610,567. American Express has a 1-year low of $214.51 and a 1-year high of $326.28. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $300.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $288.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market cap of $184.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of American Express

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.