Advisory Alpha LLC Sells 797 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Advisory Alpha LLC lessened its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 49.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 810 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 797 shares during the period. Advisory Alpha LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $218,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Doliver Advisors LP raised its position in American Express by 18.4% in the 1st quarter. Doliver Advisors LP now owns 4,301 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,157,000 after buying an additional 668 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 27,625.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,162,846 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $581,914,000 after acquiring an additional 2,155,045 shares during the period. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO boosted its stake in American Express by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 1,075 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Bath Savings Trust Co boosted its stake in American Express by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 2,916 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $785,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new stake in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BTIG Research cut their target price on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Truist Financial upped their target price on American Express from $315.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.05.

American Express Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of American Express stock opened at $294.04 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. American Express has a 52 week low of $220.43 and a 52 week high of $326.28. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $270.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $288.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $206.00 billion, a PE ratio of 20.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,590,251. This trade represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired 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 directly owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express 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.