Freedom Capital Upgrades American Express (NYSE:AXP) to “Strong-Buy”

American Express (NYSE:AXP) was upgraded by Freedom Capital from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of American Express from $425.00 to $415.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of American Express from $375.00 to $325.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Evercore set a $345.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $415.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $357.47.

American Express Stock Up 0.3%

AXP stock opened at $313.69 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $310.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $342.41. American Express has a 12 month low of $281.46 and a 12 month high of $387.49. The company has a market cap of $214.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.56.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.27. American Express had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 33.95%. The firm had revenue of $14.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.64 EPS. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 17.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Express

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Trajan Wealth LLC grew its stake in American Express by 30.9% in the 3rd quarter. Trajan Wealth LLC now owns 24,901 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,271,000 after acquiring an additional 5,881 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in American Express by 218.7% in the 3rd quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,540 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,837,000 after acquiring an additional 5,860 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in American Express by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. now owns 82,863 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $27,524,000 after acquiring an additional 8,651 shares during the last quarter. Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC grew its stake in American Express by 1,243.9% in the 3rd quarter. Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 13,775 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,576,000 after acquiring an additional 12,750 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP grew its stake in American Express by 159.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 31,611 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $10,500,000 after acquiring an additional 19,429 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Company Profile

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co‑brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.