GSB Wealth Management LLC Makes New $221,000 Investment in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

GSB Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 815 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. grew its stake in American Express by 42.2% during the 2nd quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the first quarter worth $40,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in American Express during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Founders Capital Management acquired a new position in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $274.14 on Thursday. American Express has a one year low of $143.07 and a one year high of $286.36. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $265.14 and its 200-day moving average is $246.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $193.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.68 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.30 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.14 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced 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 is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Hsbc Global Res lowered American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of American Express in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $260.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $253.09.

American Express Profile

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.