American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Eads & Heald Wealth Management

Eads & Heald Wealth Management decreased its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,890 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 669 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for approximately 1.6% of Eads & Heald Wealth Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Eads & Heald Wealth Management’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,232,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in American Express during the third quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $318.07 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $224.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.40, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.23. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $299.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $272.78. American Express has a 12-month low of $184.06 and a 12-month high of $319.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. The trade was a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on American Express from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. HSBC cut American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $265.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of American Express from $252.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $278.09.

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.