IPG Investment Advisors LLC Increases Position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Key Points

• IPG Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 107.5% during the first quarter, owning 1,930 shares worth approximately $519,000.
• American Express reported earnings of $4.08 per share in its last quarterly results, surpassing estimates by $0.22 and showing a revenue increase of 9.3% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.82, which will be paid on August 8th, representing an annualized yield of 1.1%.

IPG Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 107.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,930 shares of the payment services company's stock after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the quarter. IPG Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $519,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in American Express by 5.5% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 680,308 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $183,037,000 after purchasing an additional 35,295 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.4% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 167,534 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $45,243,000 after purchasing an additional 2,259 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 6.4% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 94,458 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $25,088,000 after purchasing an additional 5,693 shares during the last quarter. Navis Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Express by 368.7% in the 1st quarter. Navis Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,548 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $955,000 after buying an additional 2,791 shares during the period. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in American Express by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 95,443 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $25,679,000 after buying an additional 7,822 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total transaction of $15,475,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,391,191.50. The trade was a 82.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 9,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,590,251. This trade represents a 50.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 64,950 shares of company stock worth $19,787,710 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $294.25 on Monday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $306.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $291.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.60 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 $329.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $17.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.49 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Redburn Atlantic raised American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. DZ Bank cut American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average 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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