Impax Asset Management Group plc Cuts Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Impax Asset Management Group plc reduced its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,351 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 417 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,078,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. XML Financial LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 119.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 39,497 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $8,993,000 after acquiring an additional 21,508 shares in the last quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group grew its holdings in American Express by 2,196.4% during the 2nd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 8,244 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,909,000 after acquiring an additional 7,885 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 33.1% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 54,318 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $12,368,000 after acquiring an additional 13,520 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 41.3% during the 2nd quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 701 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $162,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of American Express stock opened at $286.80 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $202.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. American Express has a one year low of $157.97 and a one year high of $296.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $271.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $250.75.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. 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 year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 111,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,176,150.56. This represents a 41.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target 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. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, BTIG Research cut shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

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.