E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB Boosts Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB increased its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,970 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,570 shares during the period. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB’s holdings in American Express were worth $7,708,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. James J. Burns & Company LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. James J. Burns & Company LLC now owns 1,455 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $432,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Welch Group LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 18,823 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $5,597,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. Longboard Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $255,000. Calamos Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in American Express by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 53,286 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $15,815,000 after buying an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GDS Wealth Management boosted its position in American Express by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 62,468 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $18,540,000 after buying an additional 2,231 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $316.43 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $222.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a 1 year low of $203.42 and a 1 year high of $326.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $304.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $277.73.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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, equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.3 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 19.99%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. The trade was a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AXP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price target for the company. HSBC increased their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price target on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock 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.