Graves Light Lenhart Wealth Inc. Sells 100 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Graves Light Lenhart Wealth Inc. reduced its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,683 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Graves Light Lenhart Wealth Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 1,229 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $365,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Marcum Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 4,060 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,205,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group bought a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth approximately $262,000. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,364,000. Finally, Northstar Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Northstar Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,332 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,066,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider now directly 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 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 the firm’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 96,998 shares of company stock valued at $26,423,439 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on American Express from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America boosted their price target on American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. BTIG Research downgraded shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $277.82.

American Express Trading Up 1.4 %

AXP opened at $297.33 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $297.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $270.12. The company has a market capitalization of $209.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.88, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.23. American Express has a 52 week low of $177.81 and a 52 week high of $307.82.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. American Express’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.30 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.60%.

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.