Highland Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 19.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,855 shares of the payment services company's stock after buying an additional 5,888 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $9,916,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Trillium Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 2,449 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $727,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,510 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $448,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC increased its position in American Express by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,275 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. raised its stake in American Express by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 3,359 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in American Express by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 2,967 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $880,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
American Express Stock Up 1.9%
Shares of American Express stock traded up $6.06 on Friday, hitting $317.48. 4,605,056 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,831,690. The stock has a market cap of $222.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.25. 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 firm's 50-day moving average is $288.89 and its 200 day moving average is $288.96. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $326.28.
American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.48% and a net margin of 15.31%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.33 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.
American Express Announces Dividend
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.91%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AXP shares. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $310.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, April 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Argus downgraded American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. One 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $296.05.
Check Out Our Latest Report on AXP
Insider Activity at American Express
In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This represents a 21.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,590,251. This represents a 50.13% 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.
About American Express
(
Free Report)
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.
See Also
Before you consider American Express, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and American Express wasn't on the list.
While American Express currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Wondering where to start (or end) with AI stocks? These 10 simple stocks can help investors build long-term wealth as artificial intelligence continues to grow into the future.
Get This Free Report
