Carret Asset Management LLC Grows Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Carret Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 58,124 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises about 1.4% of Carret Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Carret Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $10,889,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Park Place Capital Corp boosted its position in American Express by 382.6% during the 3rd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 333 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in American Express by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,140 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in American Express by 92.7% during the 3rd quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,880 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,176,000 after acquiring an additional 3,791 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in American Express by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 44,386 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $6,622,000 after acquiring an additional 2,553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position in American Express by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 225,355 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $33,621,000 after acquiring an additional 1,251 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded up $0.27 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $239.23. 4,427,638 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,196,399. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $221.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $190.19. The stock has a market cap of $172.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.73, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $240.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.40 EPS. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 12.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.17%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total value of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,522,816.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total value of $2,342,945.22. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,874 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,891,480.34. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total value of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at $2,522,816.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 172,047 shares of company stock worth $36,528,388 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $221.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on American Express from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on American Express from $188.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $209.52.

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.