American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Jennison Associates LLC

Jennison Associates LLC reduced its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 69.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 59,117 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 134,333 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $11,075,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AXP. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $206,000. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. bought a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $213,000. North Star Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $232,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 29.3% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 3,918 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $734,000 after buying an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 5,641 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,057,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 0.8 %

NYSE AXP opened at $237.10 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $222.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $190.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. American Express has a 1-year low of $140.91 and a 1-year high of $240.55. The company has a market capitalization of $170.55 billion, a PE ratio of 19.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.23.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.17%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on AXP shares. HSBC boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $221.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $209.52.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total transaction of $17,979,771.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,248,905.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 84,420 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.98, for a total value of $17,979,771.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 57,512 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,248,905.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 7,029 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $203.65, for a total transaction of $1,431,455.85. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,522,816.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 210,920 shares of company stock valued at $45,804,652. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.