Meridian Wealth Management LLC Buys Shares of 3,517 American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,517 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $954,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AXP. Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 59,207 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $13,481,000 after purchasing an additional 5,764 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in American Express by 39.8% in the 1st quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,444 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,012,000 after buying an additional 1,265 shares during the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 16,133 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,673,000 after acquiring an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC boosted its position in American Express by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 5,895 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,342,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lavaca Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Lavaca Capital LLC now owns 5,471 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,246,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This represents a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Up 2.8 %

AXP opened at $301.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $276.08 and a 200-day moving average of $253.23. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $163.32 and a fifty-two week high of $301.92. The company has a market capitalization of $212.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.93%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on AXP shares. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered American Express from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $268.00 to $286.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. BTIG Research cut American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently 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.