Focused Investors LLC Sells 8,400 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Focused Investors LLC lessened its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 450,400 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 8,400 shares during the period. American Express comprises 3.7% of Focused Investors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Focused Investors LLC owned approximately 0.06% of American Express worth $122,148,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. lifted its holdings in American Express by 42.2% during the 2nd quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Founders Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Down 0.5 %

AXP traded down $1.43 during trading on Friday, reaching $286.87. 2,614,568 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,934,763. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $272.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $251.20. American Express has a twelve month low of $157.97 and a twelve month high of $296.83. The stock has a market cap of $202.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.30 EPS. American Express's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that American Express will post 13.47 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th were given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. American Express's payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This represents a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm'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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the topic of a number of research reports. HSBC downgraded shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and upped their target price for the company from $265.00 to $270.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target 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.