Insider Selling: American Express (NYSE:AXP) Insider Sells 3,592 Shares of Stock

American Express (NYSE:AXP) insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total value of $829,500.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,896.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

American Express Stock Up 0.1 %

American Express stock traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $234.66. The stock had a trading volume of 2,084,107 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,188,169. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $224.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $195.48. American Express has a 12 month low of $140.91 and a 12 month high of $240.55. The stock has a market cap of $168.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.20.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that American Express will post 12.99 EPS for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $214.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on American Express from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on American Express from $250.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $210.71.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Express

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,112,747,000. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter worth $433,709,000. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth $210,540,000. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of American Express by 62.1% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,399,494 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $449,521,000 after purchasing an additional 919,337 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1,313.2% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 768,769 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,440,210,000 after purchasing an additional 714,370 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Company 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.