American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stake Reduced by Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC

Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 38,969 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 470 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up about 1.0% of Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $11,566,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,920,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of American Express by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 124,938 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $40,261,000 after purchasing an additional 3,830 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 15,524 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,607,000 after purchasing an additional 1,753 shares during the period. Centerpoint Advisory Group acquired a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter worth about $375,000. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. grew its position in American Express by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,393 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,304,000 after buying an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP opened at $311.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.67. The company has a market cap of $219.34 billion, a PE ratio of 22.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $306.96 and a 200-day moving average of $282.04. American Express has a 52-week low of $209.10 and a 52-week high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.99%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. The trade was a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503 in the last ninety days. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point decreased their price target on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Barclays upped their price objective on American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

American Express Company 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.