American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) is Rice Partnership LLC's 7th Largest Position

Rice Partnership LLC trimmed its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 58,668 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 2,359 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up 3.2% of Rice Partnership LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Rice Partnership LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $15,785,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

American Express stock traded up $1.15 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $318.13. 2,407,496 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,024,655. The stock has a market capitalization of $222.88 billion, a PE ratio of 22.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $329.14. The business's 50-day moving average is $297.78 and its 200-day moving average is $290.19.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 earned $3.33 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays upped their price target on American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price target on American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Truist Financial boosted their target price on American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $298.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 9,402 shares in the company, valued at $2,590,251. This represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. The trade was a 21.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.