Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. Grows Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 127,555 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,208 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up approximately 3.7% of Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $23,896,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 134.8% in the fourth quarter. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA now owns 155 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Pacifica Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of American Express stock traded up $2.10 during trading on Monday, reaching $237.74. 1,918,631 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,177,644. The firm has a market capitalization of $171.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $222.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $192.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a twelve month low of $140.91 and a twelve month high of $240.55.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.40 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 12.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be given 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 yield of 0.17%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday, April 5th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Robert W. Baird lowered American Express from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $209.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total value of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at $2,522,816.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other American Express news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at $2,522,816.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total value of $2,342,945.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,874 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,891,480.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 210,920 shares of company stock worth $45,804,652 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.