Eventide Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its stake in American Express by 23.6% during the first quarter, holding a total of 25,262 shares worth approximately $6.8 million.
• American Express reported earnings of $4.08 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $3.86, and achieved a revenue of $17.86 billion.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, with a current yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 23.02%.

Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 23.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,262 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,816 shares during the quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $6,797,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in American Express during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.37, for a total transaction of $7,671,326.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 123,613 shares of the company's stock, valued at $40,343,574.81. This trade represents a 15.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total value of $1,709,235.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 20,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,312,049.47. The trade was a 21.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $311.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price objective (up previously from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. DZ Bank cut American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $313.45.

American Express Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of AXP stock traded down $1.00 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $324.41. 2,052,305 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,894,655. The company's 50-day moving average price is $313.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $291.02. The company has a market cap of $225.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. American Express Company has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $332.46.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.49 EPS. American Express's revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were given a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

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.