Choreo LLC Buys 1,063 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Choreo LLC grew its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 23.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,640 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,063 shares during the period. Choreo LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,057,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AXP. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth $29,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Baldwin Brothers LLC MA boosted its holdings in American Express by 134.8% in the fourth quarter. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA now owns 155 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total value of $2,342,945.22. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,891,480.34. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Monique Herena sold 11,242 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.41, for a total value of $2,342,945.22. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,874 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,891,480.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 203,891 shares of company stock valued at $44,373,196 in the last ninety days. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Trading Down 2.0 %

AXP opened at $234.13 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $168.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a 12 month low of $140.91 and a 12 month high of $240.55. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $223.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $193.22.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 12.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $209.52.

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.