American Express Company $AXP Shares Sold by Cambiar Investors LLC

Key Points

• Cambiar Investors LLC reduced its stake in American Express by 2.3%, selling 2,592 shares to now own 108,585 shares valued at approximately $29.2 million.
• Several institutional investors increased their holdings in American Express, with Navis Wealth Advisors LLC leading with a 368.7% increase, indicating strong institutional interest in the company.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on American Express, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and varying price targets, the highest being $375.00 from Deutsche Bank.

Cambiar Investors LLC trimmed its position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 2.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,585 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 2,592 shares during the period. Cambiar Investors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $29,215,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP traded down $0.9370 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $306.1130. 2,215,219 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,366,112. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $329.14. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $307.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $290.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The company has a market cap of $213.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.28.

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

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is 23.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $327.00 price objective (up previously from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. BTIG Research set a $277.00 price target on American Express and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 price objective on American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned 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 $311.05.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total value of $1,709,235.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at $6,312,049.47. This represents a 21.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total value of $15,475,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,391,191.50. This trade represents a 82.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 134,219 shares of company stock worth $40,555,901 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

American Express 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.