Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lowered its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 21.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 87,621 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 24,538 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $26,005,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,142 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $636,000 after buying an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,356 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $996,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC grew its position in American Express by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,189,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 4,054 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,203,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster & Motley Inc. raised its holdings in American Express by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 1,716 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $509,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $275.68 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $193.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $263.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $286.89. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $220.43 and a fifty-two week high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate 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 issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.19%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 22.91%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,889,822.54. The trade was a 21.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on AXP. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Argus cut American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Compass Point reduced their target price on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $325.00 to $274.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $295.05.

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.