CFC Planning Co LLC Makes New Investment in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

CFC Planning Co LLC acquired a new stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 13,828 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,104,000. American Express makes up 4.4% of CFC Planning Co LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $307.49 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $306.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $281.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $216.61 billion, a PE ratio of 21.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $208.82 and a fifty-two week high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Analysts expect that American Express will post 15.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 19.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on AXP. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. HSBC upped their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.