Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Sells 2,556 Shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 41.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,659 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 2,556 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $984,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new stake in American Express in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on American Express from $250.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 target price (up previously from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $305.74.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the insider owned 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,590,251. This trade represents a 50.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 10,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This represents a 21.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP traded down $5.75 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $319.49. 2,090,080 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,848,618. The company has a market capitalization of $223.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 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. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The business has a 50 day moving average of $300.79 and a 200 day moving average of $290.59.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.48% and a net margin of 15.31%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.33 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current 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 issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.91%.

American Express Company 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.