EdgeRock Capital LLC Buys New Shares in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 305 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Venture Visionary Partners LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 23,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $4,349,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Express by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 11,587 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,171,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 417.3% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 415,696 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $77,876,000 after acquiring an additional 335,338 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. acquired a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,460,000. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its stake in American Express by 35.6% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,806 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,837,000 after purchasing an additional 2,572 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of American Express stock traded up $1.43 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $236.09. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,501,199 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,180,452. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $240.55. The firm has a market cap of $169.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $225.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $196.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 12.99 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. American Express’s payout ratio is 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total value of $27,267,303.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total value of $27,267,303.96. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,642,315.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total value of $729,842.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 258 shares in the company, valued at $59,948.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 327,933 shares of company stock valued at $73,199,843 over the last ninety days. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on AXP shares. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $221.00 price objective (up from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $210.71.

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.