IPG Investment Advisors LLC Sells 6,478 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

IPG Investment Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 87.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 930 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 6,478 shares during the period. IPG Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 2.5 %

AXP stock opened at $265.16 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $186.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93, 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 quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $295.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $289.43. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $214.51 and a fifty-two week high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America lowered their price target on American Express from $326.00 to $325.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Argus lowered American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $302.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% 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.