First Interstate Bank Sells 1,331 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

First Interstate Bank trimmed its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 28,878 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,331 shares during the quarter. First Interstate Bank’s holdings in American Express were worth $5,410,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tyler Stone Wealth Management acquired a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. BluePath Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP stock remained flat at $218.40 on Tuesday. The stock had a trading volume of 4,176,339 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,074,129. The company has a market capitalization of $158.09 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 12 month low of $140.91 and a 12 month high of $231.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $219.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $186.88.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The payment services company reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 30.99% and a net margin of 13.84%. The company’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.07 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that American Express will post 12.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.18%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. HSBC lifted their price objective on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on American Express from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Stephens raised American Express from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $148.00 to $193.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on American Express in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $235.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered American Express from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $212.00 to $222.00 in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $201.62.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 57,512 shares in the company, valued at $12,248,905.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,248,905.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 69,356 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.02, for a total value of $14,774,215.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 122,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 worth $36,528,388. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.