SouthState Corp Has $2.46 Million Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

SouthState Corp boosted its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 870.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,143 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,788 shares during the period. SouthState Corp’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,462,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 5,258 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $985,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of American Express by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 2,232 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 193,261 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $36,206,000 after purchasing an additional 30,576 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 752,313 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $140,937,000 after purchasing an additional 91,685 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in American Express by 782.7% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 7,662 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,435,000 after purchasing an additional 6,794 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Down 0.8 %

AXP stock traded down $1.86 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $230.64. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,203,104 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,211,802. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $224.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $193.76. 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 twelve month low of $140.91 and a twelve month high of $240.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $165.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.20.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.40 earnings per share. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 12.99 EPS for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.17%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total value of $2,342,945.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,891,480.34. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total transaction of $2,342,945.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,874 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,891,480.34. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 57,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,248,905.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 203,891 shares of company stock worth $44,373,196. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday, April 5th. HSBC raised their price target on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $210.71.

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.