Bleakley Financial Group LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,887 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 525 shares during the quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,934,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA raised its stake in shares of American Express by 134.8% during the 4th quarter. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA now owns 155 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, Sachetta LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on American Express from $253.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $227.65.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $249.94. 2,471,496 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,996,610. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $235.46 and a 200-day moving average of $220.95. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $250.84. The firm has a market cap of $179.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.59, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 12.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total value of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,642,315.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 177,717 shares of company stock valued at $41,680,999. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.