Opinicus Capital Inc. Purchases Shares of 920 American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Opinicus Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 920 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $248,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Boston Financial Mangement LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,189,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Trillium Asset Management LLC raised its stake in American Express by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 2,449 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $727,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its holdings in American Express by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,510 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its stake in American Express by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,317 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $391,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Finally, Arista Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,275 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $675,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $297.90 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $277.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $289.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $208.71 billion, a PE ratio of 21.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.25. 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 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.33 EPS. Analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. The trade was a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 9,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,590,251. This represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AXP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of American Express from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird raised American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 14th. BTIG Research cut their target price on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Baird R W upgraded American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.05.

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.