Ritholtz Wealth Management Grows Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 9,310 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 446 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,763,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 2nd quarter worth $200,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 156.2% during the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 52,957 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $12,262,000 after acquiring an additional 32,287 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,301 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,228,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 13.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 27,929 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $6,467,000 after purchasing an additional 3,273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its position in shares of American Express by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 26,607 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $6,161,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $312.75 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $220.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.01, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 12 month low of $177.81 and a 12 month high of $315.40. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $298.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $271.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that American Express will post 13.48 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s payout ratio is 20.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AXP shares. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Compass Point lifted their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Truist Financial started coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on American Express from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $278.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 41.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 96,998 shares of company stock worth $26,423,439 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.12% 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.