Destination Wealth Management Lowers Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Destination Wealth Management lowered its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 113,561 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 6,021 shares during the period. Destination Wealth Management's holdings in American Express were worth $33,704,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $832,000. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 430.6% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,765 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 3,867 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH lifted its stake in American Express by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 349,937 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $103,858,000 after purchasing an additional 12,364 shares in the last quarter. XML Financial LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI boosted its holdings in American Express by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 86,344 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $25,626,000 after purchasing an additional 2,557 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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American Express Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE AXP traded down $5.94 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $255.38. The stock had a trading volume of 4,924,551 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,682,411. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $304.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $288.26. American Express has a 1 year low of $214.51 and a 1 year high of $326.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The firm has a market cap of $179.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a positive change from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.28%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BTIG Research increased their price objective on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point dropped their price target on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $296.38.

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.