Arkos Global Advisors Sells 1,183 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Arkos Global Advisors reduced its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 56.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 927 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,183 shares during the period. Arkos Global Advisors’ holdings in American Express were worth $215,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 62.5% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on AXP. Barclays upped their price target on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Bank of America raised their target price on American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.78.

American Express Price Performance

American Express stock opened at $271.03 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $251.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $238.61. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $272.68. The company has a market capitalization of $194.95 billion, a PE ratio of 22.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.60 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is 23.06%.

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.