Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC decreased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,404 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 120 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,010,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in American Express by 332.0% during the 3rd 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. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP stock opened at $320.87 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $302.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $274.92. American Express has a 12-month low of $186.43 and a 12-month high of $326.27. The firm has a market cap of $226.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the sale, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AXP. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price target for the company. UBS Group upped their target price on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price target on American Express from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on American Express from $252.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, HSBC lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $281.00.

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.