Ceera Investments LLC Has $8.33 Million Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Ceera Investments LLC lowered its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,708 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 725 shares during the period. American Express makes up approximately 3.1% of Ceera Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Ceera Investments LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $8,328,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. grew its holdings in American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the second quarter worth $42,000. Founders Capital Management purchased a new position in American Express in the second quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth $46,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE AXP opened at $286.87 on Friday. American Express has a 12 month low of $157.97 and a 12 month high of $296.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The company has a market capitalization of $202.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $272.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $251.20.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 13.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 20.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. HSBC cut shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $265.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Four investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the sale, the insider now owns 111,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. The trade was a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.