Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC Raises Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.7% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 13,485 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 723 shares during the quarter. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,070,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Veracity Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 1.8% during the first quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 7,387 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,682,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Accel Wealth Management lifted its holdings in American Express by 21.1% in the 1st quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 1,741 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $396,000 after buying an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its position in American Express by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 18,857 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,294,000 after buying an additional 1,465 shares during the last quarter. Wealthstar Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at about $227,000. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 1.6% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,559 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $810,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded down $0.26 during trading on Thursday, reaching $235.71. 1,365,850 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,733,787. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a 1-year low of $140.91 and a 1-year high of $244.41. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $217.31. The firm has a market cap of $169.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. Analysts anticipate that American Express will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999 in the last 90 days. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the topic of several analyst reports. BTIG Research began coverage on American Express in a report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target 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. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $221.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $220.30.

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.