American Express (NYSE:AXP) Stock Position Decreased by First National Trust Co

First National Trust Co trimmed its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 8,585 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 392 shares during the period. First National Trust Co’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,548,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,483,512 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,104,735,000 after purchasing an additional 86,100 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,984,208,000 after purchasing an additional 866,110 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,600,277,000 after purchasing an additional 95,927 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,606,986 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,249,415,000 after purchasing an additional 239,173 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in American Express by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,960,842 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,074,168,000 after purchasing an additional 33,193 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Up 3.7 %

AXP stock opened at $266.04 on Friday. American Express has a 52-week low of $214.51 and a 52-week high of $326.27. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $301.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $287.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $186.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $299.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express 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.