Waverton Investment Management Ltd Raises Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Waverton Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 786,422 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 15,038 shares during the period. American Express accounts for about 3.7% of Waverton Investment Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Waverton Investment Management Ltd owned approximately 0.11% of American Express worth $233,512,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at $832,000. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 430.6% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,765 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after purchasing an additional 3,867 shares during the last quarter. XML Financial LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 9.8% in the third quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI boosted its holdings in American Express by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 86,344 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $25,626,000 after buying an additional 2,557 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 18,982 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $5,638,000 after buying an additional 2,826 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of American Express 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value 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 approximately $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

American Express Stock Down 2.8 %

American Express stock opened at $295.23 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $307.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $285.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 1-year low of $212.48 and a 1-year high of $326.27. The company has a market cap of $207.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.24.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results 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%. Research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.99%.

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.