PFG Investments LLC Has $2.09 Million Stake in American Express Company $AXP

PFG Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,562 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the quarter. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,093,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, PFS Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express by 104.0% in the first quarter. PFS Partners LLC now owns 153 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total value of $37,034,041.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 92,810 shares in the company, valued at $30,614,306.60. This trade represents a 54.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total value of $1,709,235.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,312,049.47. This represents a 21.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

American Express stock opened at $328.76 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $228.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.07, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.29. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $349.19. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $319.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $297.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.61.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.70 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.87% and a net margin of 14.78%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.49 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AXP. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on American Express from $311.00 to $362.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on American Express from $350.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. DZ Bank cut American Express from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on American Express from $348.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $319.95.

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.