American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Stonegate Investment Group LLC

Stonegate Investment Group LLC reduced its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 35.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,837 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,001 shares during the quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $317.24 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The company has a market cap of $223.48 billion, a PE ratio of 23.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $302.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.72. American Express has a 1-year low of $199.07 and a 1-year high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Hsbc Global Res cut American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Truist Financial began coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $291.50.

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.