RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $3.24 Million in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 10,913 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,239,000. American Express accounts for approximately 1.1% of RFG Bristol Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 493.9% in the 3rd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 7,382 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,002,000 after purchasing an additional 6,139 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 332.0% in the third 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. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in American Express by 326.3% in the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 37,649 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $10,221,000 after buying an additional 28,817 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 6,630 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,798,000 after buying an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 371.3% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 202,705 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $54,974,000 after buying an additional 159,694 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $270.31 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $293.20 and a 200-day moving average of $289.86. American Express has a one year low of $214.51 and a one year high of $326.28. The company has a market cap of $189.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal 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 dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ? increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price 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. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point cut their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price target on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $302.57.

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.