Hopwood Financial Services Inc. Purchases Shares of 1,017 American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 1,017 shares of the payment services company's stock, valued at approximately $302,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AXP. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in American Express in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $255.38 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $179.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a twelve month low of $214.51 and a twelve month high of $326.27. The company's fifty day moving average is $303.89 and its 200 day moving average is $288.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

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American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is an increase from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $296.38.

American Express 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.

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