American Express (NYSE:AXP) is GFI Investment Counsel Ltd.’s 9th Largest Position

GFI Investment Counsel Ltd. grew its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 195,292 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 7,468 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for 6.7% of GFI Investment Counsel Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. GFI Investment Counsel Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $57,961,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Edgestream Partners L.P. increased its holdings in American Express by 493.9% in the 3rd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 7,382 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,002,000 after buying an additional 6,139 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth approximately $7,408,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC lifted its position in American Express by 19.2% during the third quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 3,912 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,061,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $269.25 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $189.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day moving average is $294.15 and its 200 day moving average is $289.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 12 month low of $214.51 and a 12 month high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $302.57.

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.