American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Private Management Group Inc.

Private Management Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 127,577 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 28,276 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $23,900,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AXP. Venture Visionary Partners LLC increased its stake in American Express by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 23,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,349,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 417.3% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 415,696 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $77,876,000 after purchasing an additional 335,338 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at $2,460,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,806 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,837,000 after acquiring an additional 2,572 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 1,313.2% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 768,769 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,440,210,000 after purchasing an additional 714,370 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

American Express stock traded up $5.88 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $238.88. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,684,299 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,180,570. American Express has a 52 week low of $140.91 and a 52 week high of $239.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The stock has a market cap of $172.92 billion, a PE ratio of 19.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $221.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $190.19.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.39% and a net margin of 14.50%. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.40 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 12.92 EPS for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.17%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total value of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,522,816.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,522,816.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total transaction of $14,774,215.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 122,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,022,097.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 172,047 shares of company stock valued at $36,528,388. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the topic of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. TD Cowen increased their target price on American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $229.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $208.24.

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.