Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC Buys 155,858 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2,437.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 162,251 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 155,858 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up 1.8% of Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $48,154,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 332.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Up 0.5 %

AXP stock opened at $312.52 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $307.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $283.46. 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 has a 1-year low of $209.10 and a 1-year high of $326.27. The stock has a market cap of $219.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.24.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares in the company, 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503 over the last ninety days. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Citigroup lifted 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. BTIG Research lifted their target price on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Compass Point reduced their price objective on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.