Weaver Capital Management LLC Grows Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Weaver Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 47.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,687 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 869 shares during the quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $729,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in American Express during the first quarter worth about $433,709,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its position in American Express by 924.2% during the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 851,431 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $197,149,000 after acquiring an additional 768,301 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in American Express by 8.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,447,441 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,923,399,000 after acquiring an additional 662,382 shares during the last quarter. M&G Plc acquired a new position in American Express during the first quarter worth about $114,990,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in American Express by 71.9% in 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 during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $272.31 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $262.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $244.73. American Express has a 1-year low of $140.91 and a 1-year high of $286.36. The company has a market cap of $195.87 billion, a PE ratio of 22.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.30 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.14 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on AXP. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of American Express from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $268.00 to $286.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $244.58.

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.