Wisconsin Capital Management LLC Decreases Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Wisconsin Capital Management LLC decreased its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,427 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 342 shares during the period. American Express comprises about 3.8% of Wisconsin Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Wisconsin Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $6,953,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Groupama Asset Managment increased its position in American Express by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 7,344 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,184,000 after acquiring an additional 699 shares during the period. May Hill Capital LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $318,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in American Express by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,752,084 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $3,484,312,000 after purchasing an additional 268,572 shares during the last quarter. GFI Investment Counsel Ltd. raised its position in American Express by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. GFI Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 195,292 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $57,961,000 after purchasing an additional 7,468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighPoint Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 31,413 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $9,724,000 after buying an additional 1,143 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $270.31 on Wednesday. American Express has a 1 year low of $214.51 and a 1 year high of $326.28. The company has a market capitalization of $189.90 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $293.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $289.86. 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 (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 net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.82 dividend. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup decreased their price target on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com downgraded American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $302.57.

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.