NWF Advisory Services Inc. Reduces Position in American Express Company $AXP

NWF Advisory Services Inc. reduced its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 37,222 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 4,579 shares during the period. American Express accounts for about 1.4% of NWF Advisory Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. NWF Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $12,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,425,262 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $14,808,730,000 after acquiring an additional 581,369 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 11.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,487,316 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,282,984,000 after purchasing an additional 1,349,746 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,897,335,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 4,620,873 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,473,966,000 after buying an additional 133,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its position in shares of American Express by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,342,556 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,385,188,000 after buying an additional 530,967 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $363.30 on Tuesday. American Express Company has a 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $387.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $250.26 billion, a PE ratio of 24.38, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.61. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $368.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $342.91.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported ($11.85) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.56 by ($15.41). American Express had a net margin of 14.97% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The firm had revenue of ($17,139.00) million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.91 billion. On average, analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 22.01%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, CMO Elizabeth Rutledge sold 50,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.21, for a total transaction of $18,010,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 85,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,825,691.17. The trade was a 36.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AXP shares. Compass Point restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $324.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, October 20th. HSBC set a $295.00 price target on shares of American Express and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $367.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Credit Suisse Group set a $328.00 target price on American Express in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, UBS Group set a $385.00 price target on American Express in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $353.95.

American Express Profile

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co?brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.