American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC

Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 228,960 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 1,030 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises 3.4% of Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $67,953,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value 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. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

American Express Price Performance

American Express stock traded up $0.73 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $284.20. 2,490,503 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,534,249. 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 has a 12-month low of $214.51 and a 12-month high of $326.27. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $306.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $287.61. The company has a market capitalization of $199.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express's payout ratio is presently 19.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AXP has been the topic of several recent research reports. HSBC boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $296.38.

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.