FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC cut its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,972 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 336 shares during the period. FORVIS Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,498,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Venture Visionary Partners LLC raised its position in American Express by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 23,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $4,349,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Express by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 11,587 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,171,000 after buying an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 417.3% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 415,696 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $77,876,000 after buying an additional 335,338 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth $2,460,000. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Express by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,806 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,837,000 after buying an additional 2,572 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock traded up $0.53 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $236.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 197,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,010,813. The company has a 50 day moving average of $234.55 and a 200 day moving average of $217.43. The stock has a market cap of $169.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $244.41.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.40 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 12.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.19%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total transaction of $829,500.56. Following the sale, the insider now directly 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Jennifer Skyler sold 14,802 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 16,371 shares in the company, valued at $3,957,361.83. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total transaction of $829,500.56. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,896.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 177,717 shares of company stock valued at $41,680,999. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $221.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.