American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) Insider Sells $15,475,000.00 in Stock

Key Points

• American Express insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares for a total of $15,475,000, resulting in an 82.03% decrease in their ownership stake.
• The company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with revenue increasing 9.3% year-over-year.
• American Express announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.1% with a payout ratio of 23.02%.

American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total transaction of $15,475,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 10,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,191.50. This represents a 82.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

American Express Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of AXP traded down $4.22 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $299.19. The company had a trading volume of 2,713,976 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,982,430. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $305.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $291.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market cap of $208.20 billion, a PE ratio of 21.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.25. American Express Company has a 1-year low of $220.43 and a 1-year high of $329.14.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.70 billion. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. American Express's revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.49 EPS. Research analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AXP. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price objective (up from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. BTIG Research set a $277.00 price objective on American Express and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $311.05.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Express

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in American Express in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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