Sendero Wealth Management LLC Sells 3,332 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Sendero Wealth Management LLC decreased its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 16.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,748 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 3,332 shares during the period. Sendero Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,813,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,112,747,000. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in American Express by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,399,494 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $449,521,000 after buying an additional 919,337 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 1,313.2% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 768,769 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,440,210,000 after buying an additional 714,370 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in American Express by 21.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,839,276 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $713,202,000 after buying an additional 667,695 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in shares of American Express by 969.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 602,726 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $112,910,000 after purchasing an additional 546,389 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded up $3.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $231.66. 3,901,131 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,057,715. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $234.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $215.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $166.63 billion, a PE ratio of 19.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.22. American Express has a 12 month low of $140.91 and a 12 month high of $244.41. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that American Express will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. American Express’s payout ratio is 23.06%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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 stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 value of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999 in the last ninety days. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on American Express from $214.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. TD Cowen raised their price target on American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. HSBC raised their price target on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.30.

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.