American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Position Reduced by Banyan Capital Management Inc.

Banyan Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,170 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,788 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises 5.9% of Banyan Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Banyan Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $9,845,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AXP. Parthenon LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Parthenon LLC now owns 69,632 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $20,666,000 after acquiring an additional 792 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 2,437.9% in the 4th quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 162,251 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $48,154,000 after purchasing an additional 155,858 shares during the last quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 1,962 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $582,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. Summit Place Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $214,000. Finally, Strata Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Strata Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 15,178 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $4,505,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503 in the last three months. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective 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. HSBC boosted their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Compass Point cut their price objective on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock opened at $309.90 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $217.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.12, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $209.10 and a fifty-two week high of $326.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $307.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $283.65.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 19.99%.

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.