Asset Dedication LLC Has $7.81 Million Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Asset Dedication LLC reduced its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 16.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 26,306 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 5,055 shares during the period. American Express accounts for 0.6% of Asset Dedication LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Asset Dedication LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $7,807,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 48.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP opened at $317.24 on Wednesday. American Express has a 52-week low of $199.07 and a 52-week high of $326.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $223.48 billion, a PE ratio of 23.34, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $303.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $276.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $291.50.

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.