Oxford Financial Group LTD. LLC Sells 132 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Oxford Financial Group LTD. LLC trimmed its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 9.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,272 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 132 shares during the period. Oxford Financial Group LTD. LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $378,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth $27,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,175,000. Cypress Capital Group grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 2,247 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $609,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 9.4% during the third quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 1,922 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $521,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of American Express by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 41,652 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $11,296,000 after purchasing an additional 1,098 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Down 0.1 %

AXP stock opened at $270.48 on Friday. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.28. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $298.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $288.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a market cap 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 (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders 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. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.41%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the 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 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $303.52.

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.