American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC

Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,659 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 57 shares during the period. American Express accounts for approximately 1.3% of Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Blodgett Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,680,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $316.43 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The company has a market capitalization of $222.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $304.98 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $277.73. American Express has a one year low of $203.42 and a one year high of $326.27.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.99%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. HSBC raised their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.