Topic: Growth Stocks

The Wall Street Stock Forecaster Hotline – Friday, June 27, 2008

Article Excerpt

AMERICAN EXPRESS CO. $38.04, New York symbol AXP, has settled its anti-trust lawsuit with MasterCard Inc. Amex had accused MasterCard of illegally blocking U.S. banks from issuing American Express credit cards. MasterCard has now agreed to pay Amex $1.8 billion in quarterly installments over the next three years. Combined with its November, 2007 settlement with Visa Inc., Amex will now receive $880 million a year for the next three years. In 2007, Amex earned $3.9 billion or $3.29 a share. Weaker retail spending has hurt revenue growth at Amex’s credit card business. However, credit card use continues to expand internationally. As well, the Visa and MasterCard settlements will help Amex offset rising loan losses. American Express is a buy. ANHEUSER-BUSCH COMPANIES INC. $62.26, New York symbol BUD, has rejected a $65.00-a-share hostile takeover offer from InBev NV, a Belgian-based brewer. Instead, the company aims to enhance stockholder value with a new restructuring plan that it hopes will eventually cut its expenses by $1 billion…