1,178 Shares in American Express (NYSE:AXP) Bought by Stegent Equity Advisors Inc.

Stegent Equity Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,178 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $319,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in 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 valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 42.2% during the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in American Express in the first quarter worth $38,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in American Express in the first quarter worth $40,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in American Express during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE:AXP traded down $8.99 on Friday, hitting $276.79. The stock had a trading volume of 7,884,358 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,930,270. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-week high of $286.36. The stock has a market cap of $199.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $261.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $243.90.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The company had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.30 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that American Express will post 13.14 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

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 is currently 23.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AXP. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $223.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on American Express from $226.00 to $248.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res cut shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $242.33.

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.