Baron Wealth Management LLC Purchases Shares of 774 American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Baron Wealth Management LLC acquired 774 shares of American Express Company, valued at approximately $247,000, during the second quarter, indicating growing institutional interest in the stock.
• CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of American Express worth over $37 million, reflecting a significant reduction of 54.74% in his ownership stake.
• Analysts maintain a consensus "Hold" rating on American Express, with target prices ranging widely, including a recently lifted target by Wells Fargo to $375.00.

Baron Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 774 shares of the payment services company's stock, valued at approximately $247,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AXP. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 2.8% in the second quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,191 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $384,000 after buying an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. raised its position in shares of American Express by 4.7% in the first quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 772 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 0.7% in the first quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,921 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,324,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank raised its position in shares of American Express by 0.3% in the second quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 13,116 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $4,184,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management raised its position in shares of American Express by 4.8% in the first quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 792 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of AXP stock traded down $1.26 on Friday, reaching $340.41. 8,629,534 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,346,006. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.60. American Express Company has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $344.36. The company has a market cap of $236.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.89, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a 50-day moving average of $314.68 and a 200-day moving average of $293.34.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The company had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.49 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total value of $15,475,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,191.50. This trade represents a 82.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.37, for a total transaction of $7,671,326.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 123,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,343,574.81. This trade represents a 15.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on AXP. BTIG Research set a $277.00 price objective on shares of American Express and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. DZ Bank downgraded shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $348.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $315.20.

American Express Company 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.