Perigon Wealth Management LLC Acquires 1,005 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Perigon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 58,599 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,005 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $18,692,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of American Express by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,843,893 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $12,334,299,000 after buying an additional 605,900 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of American Express by 13.7% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,025,562 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,849,777,000 after buying an additional 2,168,445 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $1,454,667,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 5,093,807 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,370,489,000 after buying an additional 78,538 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of American Express by 25.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,752,690 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,278,711,000 after buying an additional 965,221 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider owned 123,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,343,574.81. This trade represents a 15.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at $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 a total of 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Down 0.2%

American Express stock opened at $340.86 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $237.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.28. 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 Company has a twelve month low of $220.43 and a twelve month high of $349.19. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $316.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $294.66.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.49 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AXP. Barclays upped 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $315.20.

American Express 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.