Griffith & Werner Inc. Makes New Investment in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Griffith & Werner Inc. bought a new stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 4,418 shares of the payment services company's stock, valued at approximately $1,311,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,142 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $636,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. Catalina Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,356 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $996,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,189,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. increased its position in American Express by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 1,716 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $509,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 1,424 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $423,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BTIG Research decreased their target price on shares of American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Argus lowered American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $296.05.

American Express Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of AXP traded up $1.81 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $295.17. The company had a trading volume of 912,435 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,069,507. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $270.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $288.66. The firm has a market cap of $206.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th were given a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.91%.

About American Express

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.