American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Bought by Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd.

Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,958 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,972,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AXP. Waterloo Capital L.P. bought a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $231,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 73,343 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $13,740,000 after purchasing an additional 1,412 shares during the period. Icon Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $501,000. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its stake in shares of American Express by 266.0% in the 4th quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 63,472 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $11,891,000 after buying an additional 46,131 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vista Investment Management acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $203,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Trading Down 1.7 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $269.00 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $193.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $254.76 and its 200 day moving average price is $241.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $276.79.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The company had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.89 EPS. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Compass Point started coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $239.96.

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.