American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Acquired by Mendel Capital Management LLC

Mendel Capital Management LLC increased its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,264 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Mendel Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $375,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at $1,785,867,000. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in American Express by 186.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,986,710 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $886,426,000 after purchasing an additional 1,943,463 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 346.2% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,021,873 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $600,072,000 after buying an additional 1,568,747 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 36,719.1% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $300,289,000 after buying an additional 1,009,042 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $292,081,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of American Express stock opened at $264.79 on Friday. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $220.43 and a fifty-two week high of $326.28. The business’s fifty day moving average is $267.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $287.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market cap of $185.51 billion, a PE ratio of 18.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.33 EPS. Analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current 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 dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 22.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on AXP. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America raised American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $325.00 to $274.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Baird R W raised American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $295.05.

About American Express

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.