Taurus Asset Management LLC Cuts Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Taurus Asset Management LLC decreased its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 43.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,498 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 11,300 shares during the quarter. Taurus Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,932,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aljian Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth $884,000. Claro Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 8.1% in the third quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 2,209 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $599,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 247.8% in the third quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC now owns 8,694 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,358,000 after acquiring an additional 6,194 shares in the last quarter. Adero Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 1.5% in the third quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 4,944 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,341,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Investors Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Express by 23.9% in the third quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 4,526 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,228,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $286.87 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $272.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $251.34. American Express has a one year low of $157.97 and a one year high of $296.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.11, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.68 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.30 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that American Express will post 13.47 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were 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 approximately $29,724,067.18. This represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. The trade was a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on AXP. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. BTIG Research downgraded shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $253.09.

About American Express

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.