American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stake Trimmed by TIAA Trust National Association

TIAA Trust National Association lowered its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,087 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 345 shares during the quarter. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in American Express were worth $8,217,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in American Express by 62.5% during the 1st quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total transaction of $27,267,303.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares in the company, valued at $25,642,315.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the insider now owns 110,318 shares in the company, valued at $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on American Express from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on American Express in a report on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price target for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $227.65.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE AXP traded down $6.82 during trading on Friday, hitting $242.38. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,750,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,622,682. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $235.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $221.96. The firm has a market cap of $174.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $253.73.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $16.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.60 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.89 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

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.