Summit Asset Management LLC Takes $246,000 Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Summit Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,315 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Accurate Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 17.1% in the 3rd quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,859 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $287,000 after acquiring an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of American Express by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 75,302 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $11,234,000 after purchasing an additional 4,507 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in American Express by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 140,954 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $21,029,000 after buying an additional 8,009 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in American Express by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 614,383 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $91,660,000 after buying an additional 8,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 1.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 180,564 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $26,938,000 after acquiring an additional 2,721 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on American Express from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on American Express from $214.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $210.71.

American Express Trading Up 0.4 %

American Express stock traded up $0.91 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $232.37. 1,173,127 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,193,206. The firm has a market cap of $167.14 billion, a PE ratio of 19.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $223.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $193.49. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $240.55.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that American Express will post 12.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,209,855.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 203,891 shares of company stock worth $44,373,196. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.