American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stake Cut by Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC

Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,731 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 716 shares during the quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,790,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Allied Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $208,000. Carr Financial Group Corp increased its position in American Express by 1.6% in the second quarter. Carr Financial Group Corp now owns 5,447 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,261,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Ignite Planners LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 0.9% in the second quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 4,682 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,103,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Private Wealth Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 96.4% during the second quarter. Atlas Private Wealth Advisors now owns 3,021 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $700,000 after acquiring an additional 1,483 shares during the period. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 1,000.9% during the second quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 9,523 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,205,000 after acquiring an additional 8,658 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded up $4.31 on Friday, reaching $237.85. 1,956,562 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,031,447. The stock has a market capitalization of $171.09 billion, a PE ratio of 19.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 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’s 50 day moving average is $236.26 and its 200-day moving average is $227.85. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $140.91 and a fifty-two week high of $256.24.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.89 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AXP. Citigroup began coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, June 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Bank of America raised their target price on American Express from $247.00 to $263.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on American Express in a report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to 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.