United Capital Financial Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

United Capital Financial Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 99,209 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,096 shares during the quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $29,444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AXP. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Trading Up 1.8 %

American Express stock opened at $255.57 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $277.72 and its 200 day moving average is $288.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.55 billion, a PE ratio of 18.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. American Express has a one year low of $216.51 and a one year high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is 23.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point decreased their target price on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company 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. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.81.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.