Davis Selected Advisers Sells 402,542 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Davis Selected Advisers trimmed its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 52.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 363,803 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 402,542 shares during the period. Davis Selected Advisers owned approximately 0.05% of American Express worth $84,239,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ieq Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 23,030 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,314,000 after purchasing an additional 2,319 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 119.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 39,497 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $8,993,000 after acquiring an additional 21,508 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in American Express by 102.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,480 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,842,000 after acquiring an additional 6,329 shares during the period. Sciencast Management LP acquired a new position in American Express in the first quarter worth about $1,881,000. Finally, New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its position in American Express by 15.5% in the first quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 35,763 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $8,143,000 after purchasing an additional 4,800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE:AXP traded up $5.14 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $249.20. The stock had a trading volume of 129,444 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,950,715. The business’s 50 day moving average is $244.57 and its 200-day moving average is $234.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. The company has a market cap of $177.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $261.75.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 32.94%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on American Express from $240.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $223.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.70.

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.