Ascent Group LLC Raises Stock Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in American Express Company by 24.4%, holding 8,780 shares worth approximately $2.36 million as per its recent SEC filing.
• American Express reported earnings of $4.08 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations, accompanied by revenues of $17.86 billion for the quarter.
• Insider selling increased significantly, with several executives divesting over 134,000 shares totaling around $40 million in value during the last three months, indicating potential shifts in confidence among insiders.

Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 24.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,780 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,720 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $2,362,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,843,893 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $12,334,299,000 after purchasing an additional 605,900 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in American Express by 13.7% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,025,562 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $4,849,777,000 after buying an additional 2,168,445 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in American Express by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,825,135 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $2,025,632,000 after buying an additional 955,811 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the first quarter valued at about $1,454,667,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in American Express by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,015,269 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,488,482,000 after buying an additional 408,283 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Up 3.5%

Shares of AXP stock opened at $318.9630 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $308.48 and a 200 day moving average of $289.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market cap of $221.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.28. American Express Company has a twelve month low of $220.43 and a twelve month high of $329.14.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $17.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.70 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.87% and a net margin of 14.78%.American Express's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.49 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total value of $1,709,235.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,312,049.47. This trade represents a 21.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 16,998 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.83, for a total value of $5,011,520.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,653,764.83. The trade was a 65.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 134,219 shares of company stock valued at $40,555,901. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AXP shares. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 price target on American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on American Express from $250.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays increased their price target on American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $311.05.

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.

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