AlphaStar Capital Management LLC Makes New $228,000 Investment in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

AlphaStar Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 984 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in American Express by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 11,587 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,171,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 11.2% during the fourth quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 23,030 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $4,314,000 after buying an additional 2,319 shares during the period. US Asset Management LLC bought a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth $657,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $1,098,000. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC boosted its position in American Express by 119.6% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 39,497 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,993,000 after acquiring an additional 21,508 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $255.12 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $183.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s 50-day moving average is $240.19 and its 200 day moving average is $231.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $140.91 and a fifty-two week high of $256.68.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The firm had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.89 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Bank of America lowered American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $263.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. BTIG Research began coverage on American Express in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Compass Point started coverage on American Express in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 target price on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.70.

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.