ASB Consultores LLC Sells 98 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

ASB Consultores LLC reduced its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,729 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 98 shares during the period. ASB Consultores LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $740,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter worth about $375,000. Financial Counselors Inc. grew its position in shares of American Express by 18.3% in the 1st quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 5,297 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,206,000 after buying an additional 820 shares during the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express by 15.7% during the first quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 6,995 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,593,000 after buying an additional 949 shares during the period. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 29.9% during the first quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 2,076 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $473,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Callan Capital LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the first quarter worth $274,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the transaction, 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. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. BTIG Research downgraded American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $253.09.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $270.19 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $266.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $248.03. American Express has a 52 week low of $151.51 and a 52 week high of $286.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $190.34 billion, a PE ratio of 19.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.21.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. American Express’s payout ratio is 20.60%.

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.