Crescent Grove Advisors LLC Sells 409 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Crescent Grove Advisors LLC reduced its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 28.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,023 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 409 shares during the period. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $277,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. raised its stake in American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Founders Capital Management purchased a new stake in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC increased its stake in American Express by 34.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 205 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Four investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $295.12 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $267.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $248.67. American Express has a 12 month low of $152.05 and a 12 month high of $296.83. The firm has a market cap of $207.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that American Express will post 13.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.