Morgan Stanley Boosts American Express (NYSE:AXP) Price Target to $305.00

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price objective boosted by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $252.00 to $305.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the payment services company's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would suggest a potential upside of 4.07% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on AXP. TD Cowen upped their price target on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. StockNews.com upgraded American Express from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BTIG Research lowered American Express from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $230.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $286.00 to $301.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $263.68.

American Express Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:AXP traded up $5.30 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $293.08. 3,540,113 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,860,637. The company has a fifty day moving average of $288.02 and a 200 day moving average of $261.07. American Express has a 12 month low of $177.81 and a 12 month high of $307.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $206.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.57, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.30 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 41.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 96,998 shares of company stock worth $26,423,439. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Express

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased 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 worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

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.