Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Raises Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 18.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,485 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,923 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $7,564,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,483,512 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $3,104,735,000 after acquiring an additional 86,100 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,984,208,000 after acquiring an additional 866,110 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,600,277,000 after acquiring an additional 95,927 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,606,986 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,249,415,000 after acquiring an additional 239,173 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,960,842 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,074,168,000 after acquiring an additional 33,193 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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American Express Trading Down 1.7 %

AXP stock traded down $4.44 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $256.31. The company had a trading volume of 4,194,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,772,937. 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 has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.27. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $302.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $287.88. The stock has a market cap of $180.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.29, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,308,795. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point cut their target price on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. BTIG Research raised their target price on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus 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.