Kane Investment Management Inc. Makes New $817,000 Investment in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Kane Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 2,753 shares of the payment services company's stock, valued at approximately $817,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,142 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $636,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,356 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $996,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Boston Financial Mangement LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,189,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. Sunflower Bank N.A. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 4,054 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,203,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foster & Motley Inc. raised its position in American Express by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Foster & Motley Inc. now owns 1,716 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $509,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP traded down $1.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $251.48. The company had a trading volume of 3,906,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,867,825. The company's 50-day moving average is $272.87 and its 200-day moving average is $287.71. American Express has a twelve month low of $220.43 and a twelve month high of $326.28. The company has a market capitalization of $176.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. This is a positive change from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on AXP. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird upgraded American Express from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $244.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $294.90.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

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.