Independent Advisor Alliance Purchases 2,003 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 5.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 40,323 shares of the payment services company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,003 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance's holdings in American Express were worth $11,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth $1,146,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in American Express by 6.7% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 67,025 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $18,177,000 after purchasing an additional 4,180 shares in the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc boosted its position in shares of American Express by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 49,021 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $13,294,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sheets Smith Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $230,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Truist Financial started coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $350.00 price target for the company. UBS Group raised their target price on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $296.38.

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Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available 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 value of $4,765,295.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded down $5.94 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $255.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,924,551 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,682,411. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $303.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $288.29. The firm has a market capitalization 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 one year low of $214.51 and a one year high of $326.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

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

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.