Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC Makes New Investment in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 1,490 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $442,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AXP. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $1,785,867,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 36,719.1% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $300,289,000 after buying an additional 1,009,042 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter worth approximately $292,081,000. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in American Express by 35,213.7% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 317,117 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $86,002,000 after acquiring an additional 316,219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in shares of American Express by 73.7% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 707,381 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $191,842,000 after purchasing an additional 300,138 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Argus lowered American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird raised American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, HSBC boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $302.24.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This trade represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Express Trading Down 5.8 %

Shares of American Express stock opened at $233.50 on Friday. American Express has a 52-week low of $214.51 and a 52-week high of $326.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. 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 company’s fifty day moving average price is $288.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $289.28.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.41%.

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.