American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV cut its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 39.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 664,290 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 429,593 shares during the period. American Express makes up about 0.5% of KBC Group NV's holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding. KBC Group NV owned approximately 0.09% of American Express worth $180,155,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Cetera Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 119.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 39,497 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $8,993,000 after acquiring an additional 21,508 shares during the last quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group grew its stake in shares of American Express by 2,196.4% in the 2nd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 8,244 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,909,000 after buying an additional 7,885 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 49.0% during the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 279,106 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $63,550,000 after buying an additional 91,760 shares during the period. XML Financial LLC grew its position in American Express by 9.8% in the third quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in American Express by 33.1% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 54,318 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $12,368,000 after acquiring an additional 13,520 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 111,656 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the sale, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded up $1.25 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $288.89. The stock had a trading volume of 1,178,270 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,900,138. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $270.73 and a 200-day moving average of $250.49. The firm has a market cap of $203.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $157.00 and a fifty-two week high of $296.83.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. The company's revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. American Express's payout ratio is 20.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut American Express from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $268.00 to $286.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Barclays lifted their price objective on American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, HSBC cut American Express from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $265.00 to $270.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $253.09.

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.