Pinnacle Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Pinnacle Wealth Management LLC lowered its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 8,464 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 82 shares during the period. American Express comprises approximately 2.8% of Pinnacle Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. Pinnacle Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,512,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital & Planning LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its position in American Express by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 3,028 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $899,000 after purchasing an additional 566 shares during the last quarter. XML Financial LLC lifted its position in American Express by 55.1% in the fourth quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,748 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $519,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its position in American Express by 51.0% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 1,607 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $477,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT lifted its position in American Express by 86.4% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 192 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,889,822.54. The trade was a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

AXP opened at $287.09 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $268.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $288.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a market cap of $201.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.33 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th were paid a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded American Express from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $310.00 target price on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $295.05.

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.