Howard Capital Management Group LLC Sells 189 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Howard Capital Management Group LLC trimmed its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,426 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 189 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

American Express Stock Up 1.8 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $318.07 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $224.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $299.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $272.78. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $184.06 and a fifty-two week high of $319.70.

American Express Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at American Express

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Evercore ISI increased their price target on American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on American Express from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of American Express from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.