731 Shares in American Express (NYSE:AXP) Bought by Financial Network Wealth Management LLC

Financial Network Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 731 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $216,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Howe & Rusling Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Express by 12.0% in the third quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 1,834 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $497,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at $14,425,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Express by 32.4% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 10,655 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,890,000 after purchasing an additional 2,608 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. lifted its holdings in American Express by 1.0% in the third quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 9,291 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,520,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on AXP shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point cut their target price on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BTIG Research raised their target price on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $303.52.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $270.80 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $298.77 and its 200-day moving average is $288.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $190.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.33, 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.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s payout ratio 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.