Peoples Financial Services CORP. Sells 284 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Peoples Financial Services CORP. lessened its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,733 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 284 shares during the period. American Express comprises about 1.4% of Peoples Financial Services CORP.’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Peoples Financial Services CORP.’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,182,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at about $433,709,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its position in shares of American Express by 924.2% during the 2nd quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 851,431 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $197,149,000 after purchasing an additional 768,301 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted 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 purchasing an additional 662,382 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at about $114,990,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in shares of American Express by 71.9% during the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,164,098 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $269,547,000 after purchasing an additional 486,755 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE AXP traded up $2.09 on Wednesday, hitting $279.40. 86,061 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,891,555. The business’s fifty day moving average is $258.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $242.87. American Express has a 12 month low of $140.91 and a 12 month high of $281.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $200.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.84, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.89 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America upped their price target on American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on American Express from $226.00 to $248.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $242.33.

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.