Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC Grows Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 58.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,922 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 711 shares during the quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $521,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 62.5% during the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in American Express during the first quarter valued at $38,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. increased its holdings in American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas purchased a new position in American Express in the first quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the second quarter worth about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Down 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $276.82 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $261.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $243.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $286.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $199.12 billion, a PE ratio of 22.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that American Express will post 13.14 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AXP shares. Hsbc Global Res cut American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Compass Point began coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, BTIG Research cut shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $242.33.

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.