American Express (NYSE:AXP) Holdings Lifted by Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc.

Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. increased its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 15.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,884 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $507,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital & Planning LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 24.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,481 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,924,000 after acquiring an additional 1,273 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management grew its position in American Express by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 3,561 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,057,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC grew its position in American Express by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 28,283 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $8,394,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sargent Investment Group LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 11,755 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,491,000 after acquiring an additional 1,903 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

American Express Stock Down 0.4%

American Express stock opened at $296.19 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $207.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a twelve month low of $220.43 and a twelve month high of $326.28. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $272.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $288.90.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America upgraded shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $325.00 to $274.00 in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Baird R W raised shares of American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. BTIG Research decreased their price target on shares of American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. One 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 a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.05.

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.