American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by AXS Investments LLC

AXS Investments LLC reduced its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 7.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,316 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 570 shares during the period. AXS Investments LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Sachetta LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA lifted its position 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. Finally, WFA Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP traded up $3.61 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $239.07. 852,993 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,075,784. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-week high of $244.41. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $230.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $203.33. The company has a market cap of $171.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.72, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.40 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 13.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. HSBC upped their target price on shares of American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 5th. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $210.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total transaction of $27,267,303.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 110,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999 in the last quarter. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.