Advisor OS LLC Increases Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Advisor OS LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 64.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,323 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 2,094 shares during the quarter. Advisor OS LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $12,000,000. Longbow Finance SA raised its position in American Express by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Longbow Finance SA now owns 23,144 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $6,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,096 shares during the period. Todd Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 58.2% during the fourth quarter. Todd Asset Management LLC now owns 240,070 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $71,250,000 after purchasing an additional 88,303 shares in the last quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $403,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $364,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. BTIG Research raised their price target on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction 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 approximately $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $293.12 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $307.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $285.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $205.93 billion, a PE ratio of 20.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a twelve month low of $213.25 and a twelve month high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s payout ratio is 19.99%.

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.