American Express Company $AXP Stake Increased by G&S Capital LLC

G&S Capital LLC increased its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,385 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. American Express comprises approximately 1.4% of G&S Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. G&S Capital LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,632,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,191 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $384,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. DLK Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. DLK Investment Management LLC now owns 869 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. increased its position in shares of American Express by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 772 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,921 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,324,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenfield Savings Bank increased its position in American Express by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 13,116 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,184,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $342.26 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $318.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $296.86. The firm has a market cap of $238.17 billion, a PE ratio of 24.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.28. American Express Company has a 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $349.19. 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $17.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.70 billion. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The company’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.49 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $311.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, DZ Bank lowered shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $317.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total value of $37,034,041.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 92,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,614,306.60. This trade represents a 54.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 16,998 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.83, for a total value of $5,011,520.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 9,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,653,764.83. The trade was a 65.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 269,996 shares of company stock valued at $85,261,270. Corporate 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.