Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Reduces Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 55,581 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 2,709 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises approximately 1.1% of Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $16,496,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position 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 worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AXP. StockNews.com lowered American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. HSBC boosted their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 target price for the company. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $303.52.

American Express Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of AXP opened at $270.48 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $298.30 and its 200 day moving average is $288.31. The company has a market capitalization of $190.02 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 12-month low of $214.51 and a 12-month high of $326.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Research analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% 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.