Baxter Bros Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Baxter Bros Inc. grew its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 81,060 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,531 shares during the period. American Express makes up about 2.1% of Baxter Bros Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Baxter Bros Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $15,186,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Venture Visionary Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 23,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,349,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in American Express by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 11,587 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,171,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 417.3% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 415,696 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $77,876,000 after purchasing an additional 335,338 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $2,460,000. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Express by 35.6% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,806 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,837,000 after buying an additional 2,572 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock traded down $1.73 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $230.77. The company had a trading volume of 3,203,304 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,577,762. The stock has a market cap of $165.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $224.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $194.30. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-week high of $240.55.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 12.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.17%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.06%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $14,774,215.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 122,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,022,097.16. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total value of $14,774,215.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 122,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,022,097.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 203,891 shares of company stock worth $44,373,196. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on American Express from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday, April 5th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on American Express from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $210.71.

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.