Navis Wealth Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Navis Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 368.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,548 shares of the payment services company's stock after buying an additional 2,791 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises approximately 0.9% of Navis Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Navis Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $955,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,752,084 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $3,484,312,000 after buying an additional 268,572 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in American Express by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $2,600,277,000 after acquiring an additional 95,927 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in American Express by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,825,135 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,025,632,000 after purchasing an additional 955,811 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $1,785,867,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in American Express by 8.9% in the 4th 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 acquiring an additional 408,283 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Up 0.4%

AXP opened at $299.73 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $284.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $288.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $209.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.93, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.25. American Express Company has a fifty-two week low of $220.43 and a fifty-two week high of $326.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 32.48%. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.09%. American Express's payout ratio is 22.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AXP shares. Robert W. Baird raised shares of American Express from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 24th. Bank of America upgraded American Express from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $325.00 to $274.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. BTIG Research lowered their target price on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $296.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,402 shares in the company, valued at $2,590,251. This trade 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.

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.

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