Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC reduced its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 48,424 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 2,943 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises about 0.8% of Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $14,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth $484,000. Graypoint LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 8.5% during the third quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 4,100 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,112,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 4.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 653,012 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $177,097,000 after buying an additional 28,371 shares in the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 5.5% during the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,030 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $822,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth about $349,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded down $5.94 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $255.38. 4,924,551 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,682,411. The company has a 50-day moving average of $303.89 and a 200-day moving average of $288.29. American Express has a 52-week low of $214.51 and a 52-week high of $326.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.28%. American Express's payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AXP. HSBC raised their price target on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group raised their target price on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $350.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $296.38.

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.