Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC Has $14.94 Million Stake in American Express Company $AXP

Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC raised its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,840 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. Fulton Breakefield Broenniman LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $14,941,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the second quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $323.86 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $321.23 and its 200-day moving average is $299.43. The stock has a market cap of $225.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.29. American Express Company has a twelve month low of $220.43 and a twelve month high of $349.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The business had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.70 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.49 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at $6,312,049.47. This trade represents a 21.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total transaction of $37,034,041.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 92,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,614,306.60. The trade was a 54.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 269,996 shares of company stock valued at $85,261,270 over the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $327.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of American Express from $297.00 to $336.00 and gave the company a “cautious” rating in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of American Express from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $323.55.

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.