American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stake Boosted by Vicus Capital

Vicus Capital increased its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 63.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,913 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 745 shares during the period. Vicus Capital’s holdings in American Express were worth $568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd 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. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP opened at $307.49 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $216.61 billion, a PE ratio of 21.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 1 year low of $208.82 and a 1 year high of $326.27. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $306.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $281.42.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.32 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup raised their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point reduced their price target on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value 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. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.