Sustainable Growth Advisers LP Reduces Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Sustainable Growth Advisers LP cut its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 26.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,004,652 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 367,536 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up approximately 1.5% of Sustainable Growth Advisers LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP owned 0.14% of American Express worth $298,171,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 332.0% during the third 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 last quarter. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth about $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

American Express Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $256.31 on Friday. American Express has a one year low of $214.51 and a one year high of $326.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $302.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $287.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $180.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

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, 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%. As a group, analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.41%.

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.