Summit Global Investments Sells 4,219 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Summit Global Investments reduced its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 68.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,924 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 4,219 shares during the quarter. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in American Express were worth $571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $832,000. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 430.6% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,765 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 3,867 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH increased its position in shares of American Express by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 349,937 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $103,858,000 after acquiring an additional 12,364 shares in the last quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI increased its position in shares of American Express by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 86,344 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $25,626,000 after acquiring an additional 2,557 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edge Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC now owns 6,451 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,113 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.1 %

American Express stock opened at $270.48 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $190.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a twelve month low of $214.51 and a twelve month high of $326.28. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $298.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $288.81.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. StockNews.com cut American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird upgraded American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, March 14th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of American Express from $326.00 to $325.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $303.52.

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.