Canopy Partners LLC Boosts Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Canopy Partners LLC increased its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 12.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,056 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the quarter. Canopy Partners LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $1,785,867,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in American Express by 36,719.1% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $300,289,000 after purchasing an additional 1,009,042 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $292,081,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 22.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,517,668 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $450,429,000 after acquiring an additional 273,813 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,752,084 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $3,484,312,000 after buying an additional 268,572 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available 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 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This 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 owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of several research reports. Baird R W upgraded American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on American Express from $350.00 to $343.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research raised their price target on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup lowered their target price on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $302.24.

American Express Stock Down 5.8 %

AXP opened at $233.50 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $288.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $289.63. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.28. The company has a market cap of $164.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

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.