American Express (NYSE:AXP) Price Target Lowered to $244.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) had its price target decreased by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $325.00 to $244.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "neutral" rating on the payment services company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective would suggest a potential downside of 2.97% from the company's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on AXP. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Bank of America dropped their price target on American Express from $326.00 to $325.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Argus lowered shares of American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $296.81.

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American Express Stock Performance

AXP stock traded up $4.57 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $251.46. The company had a trading volume of 4,412,201 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,881,151. American Express has a one year low of $216.12 and a one year high of $326.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $176.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $279.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $288.26.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Express

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its position in American Express by 328.6% in the 1st quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 9,725 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,617,000 after purchasing an additional 7,456 shares during the last quarter. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in American Express by 0.5% during the first quarter. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC now owns 32,764 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $8,815,000 after buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV increased its stake in American Express by 0.3% during the first quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 45,755 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $12,310,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the period. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,294,000. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network lifted its position in shares of American Express by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 4,244 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,142,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.