American Express Company $AXP Shares Sold by Northstar Advisory Group LLC

Northstar Advisory Group LLC reduced its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 47.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,449 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 4,949 shares during the period. Northstar Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in American Express by 2.2% in the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,267,377 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $721,525,000 after acquiring an additional 49,593 shares during the period. ZEGA Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,080,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,598,743 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $531,038,000 after purchasing an additional 4,080 shares during the period. Dempze Nancy E increased its position in shares of American Express by 210.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dempze Nancy E now owns 3,459 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,103,000 after purchasing an additional 2,344 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reliant Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC now owns 26,189 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $8,354,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AXP. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $367.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $420.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Compass Point reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $324.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, October 20th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $353.95.

Insider Activity

In other news, CMO Elizabeth Rutledge sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.21, for a total transaction of $18,010,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 85,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,825,691.17. This represents a 36.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $363.30 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $368.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $342.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.61. American Express Company has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $387.49. The company has a market cap of $250.26 billion, a PE ratio of 24.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.15.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported ($11.85) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by ($15.41). American Express had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 14.97%.The firm had revenue of ($17,139.00) million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.91 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.01%.

About American Express

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co‑brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.