American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc.

Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc. trimmed its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,806 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 404 shares during the period. Beese Fulmer Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $4,394,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,483,512 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,104,735,000 after acquiring an additional 86,100 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 8.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,984,208,000 after purchasing an additional 866,110 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,606,986 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,249,415,000 after buying an additional 239,173 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,960,842 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,074,168,000 after buying an additional 33,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in American Express by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,203,772 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $655,137,000 after acquiring an additional 247,864 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of American Express stock opened at $320.18 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 12-month low of $205.60 and a 12-month high of $326.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $225.55 billion, a PE ratio of 22.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $305.73 and its 200-day moving average is $279.01.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.3 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on AXP shares. TD Cowen raised their price target on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.38.

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.