Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Cuts Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

27 Jan 2024, 20:00 by Renee Jackson · The Cerbat Gem

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 59.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 162,685 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 236,529 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $24,271,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 30,320,053 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $5,281,753,000 after buying an additional 507,042 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 118,198.3% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,732,068 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,028,913,000 after purchasing an additional 13,720,460 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich raised its holdings in American Express by 87,430.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 12,697,168 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,211,847,000 after purchasing an additional 12,682,662 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in American Express by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,503,902 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,847,452,000 after purchasing an additional 35,760 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,817,376 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,878,460,000 after purchasing an additional 214,837 shares during the period. 83.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded up $13.36 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $201.43. 13,555,402 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,606,542. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $204.77. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $179.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $165.35. The stock has a market cap of $146.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.22.

American Express (NYSE:AXP – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The payment services company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16 billion. American Express had a net margin of 13.61% and a return on equity of 30.60%. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.07 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that American Express will post 11.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 9th. Investors of record on Friday, January 5th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 4th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.19%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 22.51%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 11,344 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.87, for a total transaction of $1,802,221.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 88,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,040,295.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 11,344 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.87, for a total transaction of $1,802,221.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 88,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,040,295.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Jeffrey C. Campbell sold 21,008 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.33, for a total transaction of $3,536,276.64. Following the sale, the insider now owns 125,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,149,991.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Piper Sandler upgraded American Express from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $150.00 to $151.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 24th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on American Express from $190.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 11th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on American Express from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 23rd. Piper Sandler Companies upgraded American Express to a “neutral” rating and set a $151.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 24th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on American Express in a research note on Wednesday, November 15th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $184.00 price objective on the stock. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $178.21.

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