Scotia Capital Inc. Lowers Stock Position in American Express Company $AXP

Scotia Capital Inc. cut its holdings in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 5.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,826 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 2,971 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $16,212,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in American Express in the first quarter worth about $509,000. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of American Express by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,267,377 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $721,525,000 after purchasing an additional 49,593 shares during the last quarter. Dempze Nancy E grew its position in American Express by 210.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dempze Nancy E now owns 3,459 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,103,000 after purchasing an additional 2,344 shares during the last quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC increased its stake in American Express by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC now owns 26,189 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,354,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SLT Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 31.3% in the second quarter. SLT Holdings LLC now owns 1,008 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $366.14 on Friday. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $377.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market cap of $252.22 billion, a PE ratio of 24.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $348.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $322.82.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 17th. The payment services company reported $4.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.98 by $0.16. American Express had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 14.97%.The firm had revenue of $17.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.03 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.49 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. American Express has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.200-15.500 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th were paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 10th. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 22.01%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Denise Pickett sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $350.73, for a total transaction of $1,753,650.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,709,739.98. This trade represents a 39.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total transaction of $37,034,041.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 92,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,614,306.60. This trade represents a 54.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 193,292 shares of company stock valued at $65,363,878 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AXP. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded American Express from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Truist Financial increased their price objective on American Express from $375.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. HSBC set a $295.00 target price on American Express and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of American Express from $375.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $332.65.

About American Express

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.