American Express Company $AXP Shares Sold by J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG significantly reduced its stake in American Express by 84.4%, holding only 1,474 shares worth approximately $470,000.
• Several institutions, including Vanguard and Goldman Sachs, have increased their holdings in American Express, with the majority of shares owned by institutional investors and hedge funds at 84.33%.
• American Express reported a strong quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $4.08, exceeding analyst expectations, alongside an announcement of a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG decreased its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 84.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,474 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 7,956 shares during the quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in American Express were worth $470,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 45,843,893 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $12,334,299,000 after acquiring an additional 605,900 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 13.7% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,025,562 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $4,849,777,000 after acquiring an additional 2,168,445 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,454,667,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.6% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 5,093,807 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,370,489,000 after acquiring an additional 78,538 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 25.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,752,690 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,278,711,000 after acquiring an additional 965,221 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $319.95.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $330.10 on Friday. 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 company's fifty day moving average is $320.01 and its 200-day moving average is $298.43. The firm has a market cap of $229.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.29. American Express Company has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $349.19.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.37, for a total value of $7,671,326.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 123,613 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,343,574.81. This represents a 15.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total transaction of $37,034,041.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 92,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,614,306.60. This trade represents a 54.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

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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