Arizona State Retirement System Trims Stock Position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Arizona State Retirement System decreased its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 160,027 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 4,747 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in American Express were worth $43,055,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Trillium Asset Management LLC lifted its position in American Express by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Trillium Asset Management LLC now owns 2,449 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $727,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its holdings in American Express by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,510 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Arista Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,275 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $675,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 2,967 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $880,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Enterprises LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC now owns 1,939 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $575,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Down 1.8%

NYSE:AXP traded down $5.75 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $319.49. The company had a trading volume of 2,090,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,847,673. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $329.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $223.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a PEG ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $300.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $290.68.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a return on equity of 32.48% and a net margin of 15.31%. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. American Express's payout ratio is 22.91%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,590,251. This represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 price objective on American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $305.74.

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.