Kathmere Capital Management LLC Buys Shares of 1,062 American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Kathmere Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 1,062 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in American Express by 62.5% during the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP opened at $231.66 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $166.63 billion, a PE ratio of 19.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $244.41. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $234.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $215.79.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 13 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total value of $829,500.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,896.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other American Express news, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total value of $829,500.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,896.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total value of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of several research reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Express from $253.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $220.30.

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.