United Asset Strategies Inc. Has $1.77 Million Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

United Asset Strategies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,443 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 502 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,769,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. RB Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 5.3% in the first quarter. RB Capital Management LLC now owns 3,783 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $707,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Roundview Capital LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 0.4% in the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 27,029 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $5,054,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. raised its position in shares of American Express by 5.6% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,421 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of American Express by 207.1% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 946 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $177,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares during the period. Finally, Donaldson Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $397,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,522,816.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,522,816.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 57,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 172,047 shares of company stock worth $36,528,388 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AXP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on American Express from $188.00 to $206.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on American Express from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. DZ Bank lowered American Express from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on American Express from $157.00 to $159.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $201.62.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $218.40 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $140.91 and a fifty-two week high of $231.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $158.09 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $219.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $187.37.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The payment services company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by ($0.02). American Express had a return on equity of 30.99% and a net margin of 13.84%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.07 EPS. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that American Express will post 12.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.18%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.98%.

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.