Lodestone Wealth Management LLC Has $4.06 Million Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Lodestone Wealth Management LLC cut its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,684 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 299 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for about 2.0% of Lodestone Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $4,061,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 26,783.5% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 909,737 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,467,210,000 after buying an additional 906,353 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 8.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,984,208,000 after buying an additional 866,110 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 59,816.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 682,443 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $185,079,000 after purchasing an additional 681,304 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 35,213.7% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 317,117 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $86,002,000 after purchasing an additional 316,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in American Express by 73.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 707,381 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $191,842,000 after purchasing an additional 300,138 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $311.37 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $219.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $306.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $281.60. American Express has a 52 week low of $209.10 and a 52 week high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. American Express’s payout ratio is 19.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. HSBC lifted their price target on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point decreased their price target on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

About American Express

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.