Abeille Asset Management SA Acquires New Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Abeille Asset Management SA acquired a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 13,780 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,254,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Consolidated Planning Corp purchased a new position in American Express during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. FSB Premier Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. D Orazio & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in American Express during the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP raised its stake in American Express by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 280 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. 85.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of American Express from $182.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of American Express from $152.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 26th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, March 23rd. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of American Express from $204.00 to $206.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 17th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group raised their target price on shares of American Express from $163.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $196.47.

In other news, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 1,804 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.42, for a total value of $345,321.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 48,160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.38, for a total transaction of $8,590,780.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 31,285 shares in the company, valued at $5,580,618.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 189,873 shares of company stock valued at $36,472,992. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AXP stock traded up $0.81 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $161.83. 3,014,719 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,120,287. The company has a market capitalization of $121.87 billion, a PE ratio of 16.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. American Express has a twelve month low of $149.89 and a twelve month high of $199.55. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $176.36.

American Express (NYSE:AXP – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 22nd. The payment services company reported $2.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $11.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.66 billion. American Express had a net margin of 17.49% and a return on equity of 33.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.74 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 9.79 earnings per share for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 30th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.84%.

American Express Company Profile (Get Rating)

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides charge and credit payment card products, and travel-related services worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Global Consumer Services Group, Global Commercial Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services. Its products and services include payment and financing products; network services; accounts payable expense management products and services; and travel and lifestyle services.

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