Hartford Investment Management Co. Lowers Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Hartford Investment Management Co. decreased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,422 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 924 shares during the period. Hartford Investment Management Co.’s holdings in American Express were worth $10,216,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in American Express during the third quarter worth $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 332.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $309.61 on Wednesday. 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 has a 1 year low of $207.61 and a 1 year high of $326.27. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $306.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $280.80. The firm has a market cap of $218.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.10, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its 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 return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. American Express’s payout ratio is 19.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on AXP shares. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group lifted their price target on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.