Federated Hermes Inc. Acquires 170,316 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 357.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 218,010 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 170,316 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $50,480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Norges Bank acquired a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth $1,112,747,000. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $433,709,000. TD Asset Management Inc grew its stake in American Express by 62.1% in the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,399,494 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $449,521,000 after buying an additional 919,337 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of American Express by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,447,441 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,923,399,000 after buying an additional 662,382 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 969.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 602,726 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $112,910,000 after acquiring an additional 546,389 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Price Performance

AXP opened at $259.07 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $186.35 billion, a PE ratio of 21.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day moving average is $246.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $235.36. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $261.75.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. BTIG Research assumed coverage on American Express in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Compass Point started coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price target on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. 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, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.