Hancock Whitney Corp Sells 198 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Hancock Whitney Corp decreased its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,373 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 198 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in American Express were worth $19,628,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Express by 2.7% during the third quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,467 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 2.5% during the third quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $443,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners grew its stake in American Express by 10.5% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 422 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $114,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.4% in the second quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC now owns 10,384 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,404,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Godsey & Gibb Inc. raised its position in shares of American Express by 3.5% during the third quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 1,227 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. This represents a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 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 value 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. The trade was a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of American Express stock opened at $304.74 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. American Express has a 12-month low of $163.32 and a 12-month high of $304.74. The company has a market capitalization of $214.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.17, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $276.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $253.35.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. HSBC cut American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $265.00 to $270.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut American Express from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $268.00 to $286.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.