American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Bought by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 782.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,662 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,794 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Boston Partners acquired a new position in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $210,540,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 1,313.2% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 768,769 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,440,210,000 after purchasing an additional 714,370 shares in the last quarter. Canoe Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at about $73,906,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 636.7% during the third quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 442,307 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $65,988,000 after buying an additional 382,272 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in American Express by 417.3% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 415,696 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $77,876,000 after buying an additional 335,338 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE AXP traded up $0.81 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $232.27. The stock had a trading volume of 1,287,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,194,418. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a 1-year low of $140.91 and a 1-year high of $240.55. The company has a market capitalization of $167.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $223.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $193.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that American Express will post 12.99 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 5th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of American Express from $188.00 to $206.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. DZ Bank downgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. StockNews.com upgraded American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, HSBC lifted their price objective on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $210.71.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total transaction of $2,342,945.22. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,891,480.34. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total transaction of $2,342,945.22. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,891,480.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 203,891 shares of company stock valued at $44,373,196 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.