Highland Capital Management LLC Purchases 230 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Highland Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,478 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 230 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $6,646,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Strategy Asset Managers LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 3.7% during the second quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 1,818 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $317,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 1.2% during the first quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 5,566 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,041,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of American Express by 4.1% during the third quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,713 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Summit Financial LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 1.7% during the third quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 4,044 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $603,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Sunburst Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Sunburst Financial Group LLC now owns 2,279 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

American Express stock opened at $227.79 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $210.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $180.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.89 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $231.69.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The payment services company reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.64 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 30.99% and a net margin of 13.84%. American Express’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.07 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 12.83 EPS for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be given a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 24.98%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $14,774,215.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 122,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,022,097.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $14,774,215.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 122,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,022,097.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total transaction of $2,342,945.22. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,891,480.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 172,047 shares of company stock valued at $36,528,388 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $216.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $235.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $186.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of American Express from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $212.00 to $222.00 in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $188.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $189.00.

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.