Intech Investment Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Intech Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 117,846 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 2,153 shares during the period. American Express accounts for about 1.0% of Intech Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $34,976,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in American Express in the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $264.36 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a market capitalization of $185.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $300.85 and a 200 day moving average of $288.45. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (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 predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus cut shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Baird R W upgraded shares of American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial assumed coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 target price on the stock. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $299.24.

About American Express

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.