Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Has $1.85 Million Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,215 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 79 shares during the quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,845,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in American Express by 36,719.1% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $300,289,000 after buying an additional 1,009,042 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $292,081,000. FMR LLC increased its position in American Express by 8.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,984,208,000 after buying an additional 866,110 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in American Express by 35,213.7% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 317,117 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $86,002,000 after buying an additional 316,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in American Express by 73.7% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 707,381 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $191,842,000 after buying an additional 300,138 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AXP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. HSBC increased their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $303.52.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Express Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of AXP stock opened at $270.66 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $299.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $288.35. The company has a market cap of $190.15 billion, a PE ratio of 19.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $214.51 and a fifty-two week high of $326.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Equities analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.41%.

American Express Company 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.