GDS Wealth Management Increases Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

GDS Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 8.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,778 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 4,249 shares during the quarter. GDS Wealth Management’s holdings in American Express were worth $13,147,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Sachetta LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in American Express by 62.5% during the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Compass Point started coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price target on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $230.70.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $261.13 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market capitalization of $187.83 billion, a PE ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $246.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $235.89. American Express has a twelve month low of $140.91 and a twelve month high of $262.85.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The business had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same period last 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, research analysts predict that American Express will post 13.12 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express 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.