American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Position Lessened by Sawgrass Asset Management LLC

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 7.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 9,495 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 736 shares during the quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,818,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of AXP stock opened at $306.46 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $306.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $281.25. The company has a market cap of $215.89 billion, a PE ratio of 21.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $207.61 and a fifty-two week high of $326.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.67.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Equities analysts predict that American Express will post 15.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on AXP. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point lowered 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. BTIG Research increased their target price on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.38.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503 in the last 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.