American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Sawyer & Company Inc

Sawyer & Company Inc trimmed its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 12,645 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Sawyer & Company Inc’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,879,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CIC Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. CIC Wealth LLC now owns 1,518 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $346,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Aspiriant LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Aspiriant LLC now owns 6,330 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,441,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,490 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $279,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in American Express by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,188 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $410,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 62.5% in the first quarter. Game Plan Financial Advisors LLC now owns 130 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total value of $729,842.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 258 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,948.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Skyler sold 14,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $3,578,087.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 16,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,957,361.83. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total transaction of $729,842.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 258 shares in the company, valued at $59,948.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of American Express stock opened at $231.66 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $234.69 and a 200-day simple moving average of $215.79. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $140.91 and a fifty-two week high of $244.41. The firm has a market cap of $166.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.40 EPS. American Express’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Citigroup began coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $220.30.

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.