Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC Cuts Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC decreased its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 24.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 666 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 221 shares during the period. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $152,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $1,112,747,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its stake in American Express by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 4,855,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $909,575,000 after acquiring an additional 496,153 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in American Express by 21.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,839,276 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $713,202,000 after acquiring an additional 667,695 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,399,494 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $449,521,000 after purchasing an additional 919,337 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. grew its position in shares of American Express by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. now owns 2,067,858 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $387,392,000 after purchasing an additional 142,763 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AXP shares. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on American Express from $253.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, June 3rd. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $220.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of American Express 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 19,932 shares in the company, valued at $4,602,896.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 177,717 shares of company stock valued at $41,680,999 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP stock traded up $3.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $231.55. The company had a trading volume of 3,901,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,820,091. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $234.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $215.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a one year low of $140.91 and a one year high of $244.41.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

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.