MJP Associates Inc. ADV Boosts Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

MJP Associates Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 146.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,142 shares of the payment services company's stock after buying an additional 1,867 shares during the period. MJP Associates Inc. ADV's holdings in American Express were worth $933,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered 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. Argus downgraded shares of American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on American Express from $340.00 to $315.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. HSBC upped their price target on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $295.05.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $284.43 on Monday. The company's 50-day moving average is $263.18 and its 200 day moving average is $287.22. The company has a market capitalization of $199.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. American Express 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The company 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 earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share 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 issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. American Express's dividend payout ratio is 22.91%.

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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