WFA of San Diego LLC Purchases Shares of 299 American Express (NYSE:AXP)

WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 299 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $52,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 118,198.3% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,732,068 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,028,913,000 after purchasing an additional 13,720,460 shares during the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its stake in American Express by 87,430.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 12,697,168 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,211,847,000 after purchasing an additional 12,682,662 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $911,554,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in American Express by 139.1% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,869,384 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,133,106,000 after purchasing an additional 3,996,083 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank acquired a new position in American Express during the 2nd quarter valued at about $397,678,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of American Express from $185.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 23rd. Piper Sandler Companies raised shares of American Express to a “neutral” rating and set a $151.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 24th. Piper Sandler raised shares of American Express from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $151.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 24th. Barclays started coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, November 15th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $184.00 price target for the company. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, November 1st. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $158.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $171.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 11,344 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.87, for a total value of $1,802,221.28. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 88,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,040,295.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 11,344 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.87, for a total transaction of $1,802,221.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 88,376 shares in the company, valued at $14,040,295.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Walter Joseph Clayton III bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 24th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $143.93 per share, with a total value of $143,930.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $287,860. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $163.85 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $152.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.60 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The firm has a market cap of $119.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $182.15.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 20th. The payment services company reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.96 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $15.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.36 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 30.60% and a net margin of 13.61%. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. On average, analysts expect that American Express will post 11.19 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 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 6th were paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 5th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.51%.

American Express Company Profile

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides charge and credit payment card products, and travel-related services worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Global Consumer Services Group, Global Commercial Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services. Its products and services include payment and financing products; network services; accounts payable expense management products and services; and travel and lifestyle services.