Smead Capital Management Inc. Purchases 54,958 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,629,480 shares of the payment services company's stock after acquiring an additional 54,958 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up 6.3% of Smead Capital Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Smead Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.23% of American Express worth $441,915,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its position in American Express by 823.5% in the 1st quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 628 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $143,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter worth $459,000. Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter worth $213,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in shares of American Express by 26.2% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 39,494 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $8,992,000 after buying an additional 8,204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 51.5% during the 1st quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 8,881 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,022,000 after buying an additional 3,020 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock remained flat at $285.54 during trading on Tuesday. The company had a trading volume of 2,494,392 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,901,408. The stock's 50-day moving average is $273.81 and its 200-day moving average is $252.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $201.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.01, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 52 week low of $161.73 and a 52 week high of $296.83.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $16.68 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. American Express's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.30 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that American Express will post 13.47 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. American Express's payout ratio is currently 20.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AXP. Hsbc Global Res downgraded American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $253.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. The trade was a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.11% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.