WealthTrust Axiom LLC Buys 2,236 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

WealthTrust Axiom LLC boosted its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 79.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,035 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,236 shares during the quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in American Express by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,953,460 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,037,387,000 after acquiring an additional 41,443 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd lifted its position in American Express by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd now owns 3,572,743 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $533,018,000 after acquiring an additional 67,575 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in American Express by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,800,045 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $268,549,000 after acquiring an additional 102,977 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in American Express by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,574,663 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $294,856,000 after acquiring an additional 102,132 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in American Express by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,480,157 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $220,825,000 after acquiring an additional 21,876 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total transaction of $2,342,945.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,891,480.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 203,891 shares of company stock worth $44,373,196. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

American Express stock traded down $4.78 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $234.14. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,110,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,186,619. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $240.55. The company has a market capitalization of $168.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 1.62. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $223.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $192.64.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.40 EPS. American Express’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 12.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.17%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on AXP shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $188.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 5th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $214.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $209.52.

About American Express

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.