American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Breaks Above Fifty Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $317.76 and traded as high as $318.81. American Express shares last traded at $318.3760, with a volume of 2,146,266 shares trading hands.

American Express News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting American Express this week:

• Positive Sentiment: American Express reported third-quarter adjusted EPS of $4.68, ahead of the $4.50 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 8.9% year over year to $20.06 billion. The company also maintained or raised its 2026 EPS outlook to $17.60–$17.90, supporting the investment case. Is AmEx Stock a Buy After Q3 Earnings Beat? Premium Appeal Shines
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investors continue to highlight AXP’s valuable brand, affluent customer base, strong cash flow and premium spending trends. Some commentary suggests the stock may be below fair value relative to its earnings power and returns on capital. American Express Stock Looks Below Fair Value On Earnings Strength
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target for American Express, providing additional support for the stock following the earnings report. American Express Stock Gets Price Target Boost from JPMorgan Chase
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinion remains mixed: Morgan Stanley assigned a Hold rating, while other coverage is more constructive. This limits the immediate bullish impact of the earnings beat. Morgan Stanley Issues a Hold Rating on American Express
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about rising benefit and operating costs, softer commercial-card growth and the stock’s broader 2026 underperformance despite record earnings. American Express is also exposed to higher interest rates, falling asset prices and rising unemployment among high-income consumers. Reasons American Express Stock Is Having Its Worst Year Since 2015 Despite Record Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: The planned elimination of 3,500 jobs and $336 million restructuring charge to support artificial-intelligence integration could weigh on near-term results, even though management expects longer-term efficiency benefits. American Express to Cut 3,500 Jobs in Restructuring

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial decreased their target price on American Express from $375.00 to $370.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on American Express from $396.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. President Capital increased their price target on shares of American Express from $359.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of American Express from $338.00 to $335.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Guggenheim started coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $365.19.

American Express Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $215.00 billion, a PE ratio of 17.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $317.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $326.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a current ratio of 1.65.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.50 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $20.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.12 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 34.19% and a net margin of 15.80%. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.14 earnings per share. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.600-17.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that American Express Company will post 17.73 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.40%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Express

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at $14,208,662,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 40.2% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 40,967,262 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $13,857,176,000 after purchasing an additional 11,739,541 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of American Express by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 7,969,555 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,695,702,000 after purchasing an additional 614,981 shares during the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP increased its position in shares of American Express by 492.2% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 4,771,292 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,613,890,000 after purchasing an additional 3,965,582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,263,787,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Company Profile

American Express Company is a global financial services company that provides payment, lending, travel and expense management products and services. Its offerings include consumer and small-business charge and credit cards, corporate payment programs, business financing solutions, deposit products and digital payment services.

The company operates an integrated payments network that connects card members, merchants and financial institutions. American Express also provides merchant acquisition and payment processing services, data and analytics, fraud prevention tools, and customer loyalty programs.