White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC Increases Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 101.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,834 shares of the payment services company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,929 shares during the quarter. White Knight Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $1,138,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital & Planning LLC purchased a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $213,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 57.7% in the fourth quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,059 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,798,000 after buying an additional 2,217 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted its position in shares of American Express by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 28,155 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $8,356,000 after buying an additional 6,450 shares in the last quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,367 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $999,000 after buying an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Willner & Heller LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Willner & Heller LLC now owns 1,356 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:AXP traded down $1.86 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $285.32. 1,724,091 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,849,593. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. The firm's fifty day moving average is $269.05 and its 200-day moving average is $288.60. American Express has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $326.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.33 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. This is a positive change from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express's payout ratio is 22.91%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. 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 report on Friday, March 14th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. BTIG Research lowered their price objective on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $296.05.

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.