Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC Raises Stake in American Express Company $AXP

Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC raised its position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 4.4% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 8,772 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 370 shares during the period. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,798,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the second quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new stake in American Express during the second quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Down 2.5%

AXP stock opened at $316.27 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $322.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $300.00. American Express Company has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $349.19. The company has a market cap of $220.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.29. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The firm had revenue of $17.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.49 EPS. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $297.00 to $336.00 and gave the stock a “cautious” rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of American Express from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $343.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $323.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total value of $18,360,145.87. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,677,527.47. The trade was a 87.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.37, for a total transaction of $7,671,326.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 123,613 shares in the company, valued at $40,343,574.81. This represents a 15.98% 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 worth $85,261,270 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.