American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Princeton Global Asset Management LLC

Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,269 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 281 shares during the quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $673,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Chicago Capital LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 13,368 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $3,967,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the period. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 20.2% during the 4th quarter. Magnolia Capital Advisors LLC now owns 903 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $215,000. Willis Investment Counsel raised its position in shares of American Express by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 53,983 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $16,022,000 after acquiring an additional 1,361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horst & Graben Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $214,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Trading Down 0.6 %

American Express stock opened at $317.12 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $223.40 billion, a PE ratio of 22.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $304.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $277.54. American Express has a 52 week low of $199.88 and a 52 week high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.99%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. TD Cowen raised their price target on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

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.