Crestwood Advisors Group LLC Buys 496 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Crestwood Advisors Group LLC grew its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 8.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,167 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 496 shares during the quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in American Express in the third quarter worth about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction 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 approximately $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 90 days, insiders have sold 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP opened at $295.16 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $307.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $285.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market cap of $207.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a 1-year low of $213.25 and a 1-year high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results 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 net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the topic of several recent research reports. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price target on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

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.