Capital Investment Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Capital Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 4.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 105,258 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 4,607 shares during the quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $28,320,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,590,251. This represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut their price target on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of American Express from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $296.05.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $302.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 52 week low of $220.43 and a 52 week high of $326.28. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $273.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $289.10. The company has a market cap of $212.08 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.25.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.