American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Inceptionr LLC

Inceptionr LLC lowered its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 26.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,729 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 994 shares during the quarter. Inceptionr LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $810,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,142 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $636,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC lifted its position in American Express by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 3,356 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $996,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Boston Financial Mangement LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,189,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Auxier Asset Management grew its position in American Express by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Auxier Asset Management now owns 7,133 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Abel Hall LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 1,011 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $274,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

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American Express Trading Down 2.3 %

NYSE:AXP traded down $5.94 on Tuesday, hitting $255.38. The stock had a trading volume of 4,924,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,682,396. The stock has a market cap of $179.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.23, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $304.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $288.26. American Express has a 1-year low of $214.51 and a 1-year high of $326.27.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.82 dividend. 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%. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired 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 purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were 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. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut American Express from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus 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.