DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. Cuts Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. lessened its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 29.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 116 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 49 shares during the period. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $31,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the second quarter worth about $42,000. Founders Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the second quarter valued at about $46,000. Beacon Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 162.1% in the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 228 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sachetta LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 34.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 205 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BTIG Research cut American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 price target for the company. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on American Express from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

American Express Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $269.96 on Friday. American Express has a 12-month low of $141.02 and a 12-month high of $286.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.66 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $263.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $244.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $194.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 13.14 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.06%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.12% 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.