Milestone Asset Management LLC Increases Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Milestone Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 14.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,642 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,103 shares during the period. American Express comprises approximately 1.6% of Milestone Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Milestone Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $7,314,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in American Express during the third quarter worth about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in American Express during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction of $1,820,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Express Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $315.14 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $222.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $303.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $276.27. American Express has a 52 week low of $199.88 and a 52 week high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. Research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on American Express from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Barclays increased their target price on American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group increased their target price on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $294.95.

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.