Calton & Associates Inc. Increases Stock Position in American Express Company $AXP

Calton & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 170.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,020 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 1,272 shares during the quarter. Calton & Associates Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $543,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $331.62 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $311.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $290.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $230.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.27, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.28. American Express Company has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $332.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.70 billion. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.02%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total transaction of $18,360,145.87. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,677,527.47. This trade represents a 87.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total transaction of $1,709,235.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,312,049.47. This represents a 21.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 134,219 shares of company stock valued at $40,555,901 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. BTIG Research set a $277.00 target price on shares of American Express and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $311.05.

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.