American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by KRS Capital Management LLC

KRS Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 11.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,364 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 726 shares during the period. American Express accounts for approximately 1.0% of KRS Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest holding. KRS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,221,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in American Express by 32.6% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,889 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $431,000 after buying an additional 711 shares during the last quarter. Operose Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 37,581 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $5,607,000 after purchasing an additional 3,592 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 6,967 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,039,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $233,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of AXP stock opened at $231.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 1.62. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $244.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $234.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $215.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $166.63 billion, a PE ratio of 19.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.22.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that American Express will post 13 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 23.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. HSBC raised their target price on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, BTIG Research assumed coverage on American Express in a report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $220.30.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total value of $729,842.76. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 258 shares in the company, valued at $59,948.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total transaction of $729,842.76. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,948.88. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total value of $829,500.56. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,932 shares in the company, valued at $4,602,896.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999 over the last 90 days. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.