Northstar Advisory Group LLC Increases Stake in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Northstar Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in American Express by 18.1%, owning 10,398 shares valued at approximately $3.32 million, making it the firm's 20th largest holding.
• American Express reported quarterly earnings of $4.08 EPS, exceeding estimates and reflecting 9.3% revenue growth year-over-year at $17.86 billion.
• The company's recent insider sales included CEO Stephen J. Squeri, who sold 112,272 shares for over $37 million, reducing his stake in the company significantly.

Northstar Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 18.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,398 shares of the payment services company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,593 shares during the period. American Express accounts for about 1.6% of Northstar Advisory Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Northstar Advisory Group LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $3,317,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of 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 in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $325.48 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $226.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.61. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $332.46. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $313.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $291.89.

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

American Express Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on AXP. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $313.45.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total transaction of $37,034,041.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 92,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,614,306.60. The trade was a 54.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the business's 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 completion of the transaction, the insider owned 20,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,312,049.47. This trade represents a 21.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 269,996 shares of company stock valued at $85,261,270 over the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.