American Express Company $AXP Stock Holdings Boosted by Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC

Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 40,049 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,758 shares during the period. American Express makes up about 2.2% of Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $14,816,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its holdings in American Express by 153.3% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 76 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the subject of several research reports. Freedom Capital upgraded American Express from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings downgraded American Express from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays cut their price target on American Express from $323.00 to $322.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 24th. Evercore set a $345.00 price target on American Express in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on American Express from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $359.05.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $311.98 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $311.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $340.20. The stock has a market cap of $212.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.08. American Express Company has a 1-year low of $281.46 and a 1-year high of $387.49.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 3rd were paid a $0.95 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.71%.

American Express 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.