Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. Acquires 900 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 909.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 999 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $296,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 105.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,000 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 19,400 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 31.2% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 109,198 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $25,285,000 after acquiring an additional 25,937 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 446,748 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $103,444,000 after purchasing an additional 1,713 shares in the last quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group increased its position in shares of American Express by 2,196.4% in the second quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 8,244 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,909,000 after purchasing an additional 7,885 shares during the period. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC raised its stake in American Express by 6.3% in the second quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 1,129 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of AXP stock opened at $320.87 on Friday. American Express has a 1-year low of $186.43 and a 1-year high of $326.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market cap of $226.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.61, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $302.35 and a 200-day moving average of $274.66.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released 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 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. American Express’s payout ratio is 20.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on AXP. Barclays raised their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Compass Point boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. TD Cowen raised their target price on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group boosted their price target on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $281.00.

American Express Company 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.