Asset Dedication LLC Sells 971 Shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Asset Dedication LLC trimmed its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 3.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,335 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 971 shares during the period. American Express comprises 0.6% of Asset Dedication LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Asset Dedication LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $6,816,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AXP. Redburn Atlantic upgraded American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $305.74.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $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 accessible through this link. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 10,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of AXP traded down $5.75 on Friday, reaching $319.49. The stock had a trading volume of 2,090,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,848,618. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. 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 price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $300.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $290.59.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 32.48%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

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

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.