Aviva PLC Sells 7,131 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Aviva PLC reduced its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 381,564 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 7,131 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $113,244,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $233.50 on Friday. American Express has a one year low of $214.51 and a one year high of $326.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $288.96 and a 200 day moving average of $289.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company has a market capitalization of $164.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.67, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on AXP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped 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. Compass Point decreased their price objective on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $302.24.

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.