Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC Sells 4,063 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC lowered its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 25.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,742 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 4,063 shares during the period. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $3,485,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $296.38.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company'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 sale, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly 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. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Performance

American Express stock opened at $273.13 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $305.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $287.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $214.51 and a fifty-two week high of $326.27. The company has a market capitalization of $191.88 billion, a PE ratio of 19.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This is a positive change from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

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.

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