American Express (NYSE:AXP) Position Boosted by Essex Savings Bank

Essex Savings Bank boosted its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,948 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the quarter. Essex Savings Bank’s holdings in American Express were worth $875,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on AXP. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on American Express from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $278.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 96,998 shares of company stock valued at $26,423,439. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Express Trading Up 4.0 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $312.51 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $297.91 and its 200-day moving average is $270.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. American Express has a 12 month low of $177.81 and a 12 month high of $313.96. The firm has a market cap of $220.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.23.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 20.60%.

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.