Citizens National Bank Trust Department Sells 343 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Citizens National Bank Trust Department lessened its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,686 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 343 shares during the quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,084,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. grew its position in American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth approximately $46,000. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in American Express in the first quarter worth approximately $40,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the second quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $272.69 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $192.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. American Express has a 12 month low of $148.33 and a 12 month high of $286.36. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $266.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $247.66.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 20.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of American Express from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $268.00 to $286.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

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.