American Express (NYSE:AXP) Holdings Raised by Chatham Capital Group Inc.

Chatham Capital Group Inc. increased its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,804 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 645 shares during the quarter. Chatham Capital Group Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $5,648,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,347 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $762,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 16.6% in the first quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,337 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board boosted its position in shares of American Express by 15.5% in the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 35,763 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $8,143,000 after buying an additional 4,800 shares during the period. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at $201,000. Finally, CRA Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in American Express during the first quarter valued at $232,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded up $3.15 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $231.55. 3,901,233 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,820,091. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.22. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $234.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $216.40. 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 has a 1-year low of $140.91 and a 1-year high of $244.41.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.40 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the subject of a number of research reports. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price 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. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.30.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Jennifer Skyler sold 14,802 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $3,578,087.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 16,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,957,361.83. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total value of $729,842.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,948.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Skyler sold 14,802 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $3,578,087.46. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,371 shares in the company, valued at $3,957,361.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999. 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.