Signature Wealth Management Group Has $2.40 Million Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Signature Wealth Management Group lessened its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,902 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 85 shares during the quarter. Signature Wealth Management Group’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,395,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Boston Financial Mangement LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,189,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 2,449 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $727,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its stake in shares of American Express by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,510 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,317 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $391,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arista Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,275 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Bank of America raised 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. Argus lowered shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $310.00 target price on shares of American Express 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 assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.05.

Insider Activity

In other American Express news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,402 shares in the company, valued at $2,590,251. This represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $287.62 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $278.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $288.83. American Express has a 52 week low of $220.43 and a 52 week high of $326.28. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $201.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.53, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.25.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

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.