Welch & Forbes LLC Trims Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Welch & Forbes LLC reduced its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 89,890 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 502 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $16,840,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA increased its stake in American Express by 134.8% in the 4th quarter. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA now owns 155 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. WFA Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of American Express stock traded up $3.52 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $234.29. 2,259,187 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,200,852. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $224.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $195.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $168.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.20. American Express has a twelve month low of $140.91 and a twelve month high of $240.55.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.40 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that American Express will post 12.99 EPS for the current year.

American Express Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.17%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 23.06%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total transaction of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total transaction of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 321,200 shares of company stock worth $71,640,500. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com upgraded American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $221.00 target price (up from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $210.71.

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.