Woodstock Corp Has $1.31 Million Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Woodstock Corp cut its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 6.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,853 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 362 shares during the quarter. Woodstock Corp’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,306,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,752,084 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,484,312,000 after purchasing an additional 268,572 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,600,277,000 after purchasing an additional 95,927 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,825,135 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,025,632,000 after purchasing an additional 955,811 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,785,867,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,015,269 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,488,482,000 after purchasing an additional 408,283 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on AXP shares. Redburn Atlantic raised American Express from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird raised American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Argus lowered American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.05.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $294.04 on Friday. American Express has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $326.28. The business’s fifty day moving average is $270.91 and its 200 day moving average is $288.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $206.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results 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. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.04 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.12%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 22.91%.

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.