Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Sells 8,114 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC decreased its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 312,830 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 8,114 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $71,228,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AXP. Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in American Express by 32.6% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,889 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 711 shares in the last quarter. Operose Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 10.6% in the third quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 37,581 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $5,607,000 after buying an additional 3,592 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 8.7% in the third quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 6,967 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,039,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MQS Management LLC bought a new position in American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $233,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $253.00 to $263.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. HSBC boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $221.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $220.30.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $228.41 on Friday. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $244.41. The company has a market cap of $164.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $234.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $215.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that American Express will post 13 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total transaction of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,642,315.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total value of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 177,717 shares of company stock valued at $41,680,999 over the last quarter. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.