American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stake Lessened by MWA Asset Management

MWA Asset Management decreased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,418 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 38 shares during the quarter. MWA Asset Management’s holdings in American Express were worth $718,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Down 1.1 %

AXP opened at $316.72 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $306.05 and a 200-day moving average of $279.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $223.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 1-year low of $207.61 and a 1-year 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 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.3 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.88%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 19.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BTIG Research lifted their target price 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. Three 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 a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Express 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.