Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators Lowers Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators trimmed its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 12.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 509 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 71 shares during the quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators’ holdings in American Express were worth $151,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $832,000. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in American Express by 430.6% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,765 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,292,000 after buying an additional 3,867 shares in the last quarter. XML Financial LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 9.8% during the third quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI lifted its position in shares of American Express by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 86,344 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $25,626,000 after acquiring an additional 2,557 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 18,982 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $5,638,000 after acquiring an additional 2,826 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $295.23 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 12 month low of $212.48 and a 12 month high of $326.27. The company has a market capitalization of $207.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.07, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.24. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $307.54 and its 200 day moving average is $284.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.32 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AXP. StockNews.com downgraded American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Express Company 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.