Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Sells 5,546 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC decreased its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 307,258 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 5,546 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $91,191,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its position in shares of American Express by 39.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 1,231 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $334,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 15.4% in the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 5,302 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,438,000 after acquiring an additional 708 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 2,655 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $720,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,811 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,118,000 after purchasing an additional 1,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Angeles Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $233,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $256.31 on Friday. American Express has a 12-month low of $214.51 and a 12-month high of $326.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market cap of $180.07 billion, a PE ratio of 18.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $302.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $287.88.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Compass Point cut their target price on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com lowered American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

Insider Transactions 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 transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by 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.