Buckingham Capital Management Inc. Sells 1,687 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Buckingham Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,425 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,687 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for approximately 1.4% of Buckingham Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Buckingham Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $11,998,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AXP. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 26,783.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 909,737 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,467,210,000 after purchasing an additional 906,353 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in American Express by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,984,208,000 after buying an additional 866,110 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its stake in American Express by 59,816.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 682,443 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $185,079,000 after acquiring an additional 681,304 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 35,213.7% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 317,117 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $86,002,000 after acquiring an additional 316,219 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of American Express by 73.7% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 707,381 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $191,842,000 after acquiring an additional 300,138 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE AXP opened at $311.37 on Tuesday. American Express has a 12-month low of $209.10 and a 12-month high of $326.27. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $306.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $282.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $219.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.22, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. On average, analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.32 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,308,795. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. The trade was a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on AXP. Citigroup upped their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

American Express Company Profile

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.