American Express Company $AXP Shares Sold by Gabelli Funds LLC

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its stake in American Express by 6.0%, selling 35,003 shares, which now makes up approximately 1.1% of their portfolio.
• Insider sales at American Express included Glenda G. Mcneal selling 50,000 shares for $15.47 million, representing an 82.03% decrease in her position.
• American Express reported $4.08 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.82 with an annual yield of 1.0%.

Gabelli Funds LLC reduced its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 6.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 552,624 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 35,003 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises approximately 1.1% of Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Gabelli Funds LLC owned 0.08% of American Express worth $148,683,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kitching Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its stake in American Express by 64.0% in the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 3,659 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $985,000 after purchasing an additional 1,428 shares during the last quarter. Mirova grew its stake in American Express by 6.7% in the first quarter. Mirova now owns 45,785 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $12,318,000 after purchasing an additional 2,885 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank boosted its holdings in American Express by 2.1% in the first quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 167,832 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $45,155,000 after acquiring an additional 3,376 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in American Express by 2.8% in the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 24,178 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $6,505,000 after acquiring an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE:AXP traded up $4.63 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $331.62. The company had a trading volume of 2,980,947 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,304,664. American Express Company has a 1-year low of $220.43 and a 1-year high of $332.06. The firm has a market cap of $230.77 billion, a PE ratio of 23.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.28. The business's 50 day moving average price is $311.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $290.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.60.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. American Express's payout ratio is presently 23.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on AXP. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price target (up previously from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Truist Financial raised their price target on American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $311.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total transaction of $1,709,235.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,312,049.47. This represents a 21.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total value of $18,360,145.87. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,677,527.47. The trade was a 87.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 134,219 shares of company stock valued at $40,555,901. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.