Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. Sells 1,300 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. cut its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 11.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,658 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,300 shares during the quarter. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,970,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their target price on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Baird R W raised American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $295.05.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,919 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This represents a 21.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $299.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $266.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $288.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $209.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.33 EPS. Analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th were given a $0.82 dividend. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.91%.

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.