CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC Lowers Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lowered its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 214,952 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,478 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $65,098,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the business’s 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 in the company, valued at $998,593. This represents a ? increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Express Trading Down 2.5 %

American Express stock opened at $265.16 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $186.28 billion, a PE ratio of 18.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 12 month low of $214.51 and a 12 month high of $326.28. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $295.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $289.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup lowered their price target on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $302.57.

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.