American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Clarkston Capital Partners LLC

Clarkston Capital Partners LLC lessened its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 167,622 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 3,300 shares during the period. American Express accounts for approximately 0.8% of Clarkston Capital Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $45,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. XML Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 9.8% during the third quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $306,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 worth $8,993,000 after buying an additional 21,508 shares during the period. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group lifted its holdings in American Express by 2,196.4% during the second quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 8,244 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,909,000 after purchasing an additional 7,885 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 33.1% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 54,318 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $12,368,000 after buying an additional 13,520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 41.3% in the second quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 701 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $162,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI upped their target price 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. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Hsbc Global Res cut American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered American Express from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $230.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Four investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $253.09.

Insider Activity

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. This trade represents a 41.09 % 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

AXP stock traded down $1.33 during trading on Monday, hitting $285.54. The company had a trading volume of 2,074,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,903,232. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $272.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $251.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The firm has a market cap of $201.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 1-year low of $161.73 and a 1-year high of $296.83.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The company had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 EPS. American Express's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that American Express will post 13.47 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

About American Express

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.