American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Bought by Parallel Advisors LLC

Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 12,773 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 846 shares during the quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,791,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AXP. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its position in shares of American Express by 4.2% during the third quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 2,655 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 2.0% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 14,291 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $3,876,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares in the last quarter. Claro Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 8.1% during the third quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 2,209 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $599,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth about $884,000. Finally, Aviso Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth about $595,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $264.36 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $300.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $288.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $185.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. American Express has a 12 month low of $214.51 and a 12 month high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird upgraded American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com cut American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $299.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.